Monday, February 28, 2011

Monday's Mystery Ledger, part 5

This is a continuation of the ledger entries I started in my Monday Mystery Ledger (first posting January 31, 2011).

To repeat: The challenge, should you choose to accept it, is to try to help me figure out where this ledger came from – patterns of names connecting to families might help narrow down the possibilities. Although I don't know for sure, it probably is from somewhere near Albany in upstate New York. The first entry is 1830. My notes and running commentary are in brackets...

I hope you find something here on your family – there are a lot of tidbits, with people mentioned as “son of”, “wife of” etc. So good luck!

Names found in the posts for previous Mondays included:

Becker, Mary
Becker, David
Becker, Peter
Beecker, David
Billington, James
Billington, John (son of James)
Borgt, George
Dusendorf, Wm
Flansburg, Conrad
Fundy, Henry
Groat, SimonHoug, Peter M
Merenae, Abram/Abraham
Mereness, John
Mereness, John Jr
Mereness, Martin
Moak, Phillip
Pinder, John
Rosenburg, Jacob
Simonmons, [illegible]
Sirby (Dirby?), Nicolas
Rosenburg, Jacob
Sommers, Abram
Sommers, Harriett
Vanderwarker, George
(above might be Vandewater?)
Vaness, John

Today, the ledger revisits some individuals who have already made an appearance. There are also some new names as well.

Make like Sherlock Holmes and see what clues you can find – on to the ledger entries!

Monday, February 21, 2011

Monday's Mystery Ledger, part 4

This is a continuation of the ledger entries I started in my Monday Mystery Ledger (first posting January 31, 2011). When I first looked through this ledger, I wasn't sure how useful it was – but eventually I broke a couple of brick walls, finding people mentioned as “son of”, “wife of” etc. So good luck!

To repeat: The challenge, should you choose to accept it, is to try to help me figure out where this ledger came from – patterns of names connecting to families might help narrow down the possibilities. Although I don't know for sure, it probably is from somewhere near Albany in upstate New York. The first entry is 1830. My notes and running commentary are in brackets...

Names found in the posts for previous Mondays included:

Becker, Mary
Beecker, David
Billington, James
Billington, John (son of James)
Flansburg, Conrad
Groat, Simon
Houg, Peter M
Merenae, Abram
Mereness, John
Mereness, John Jr
Moak, Phillip
Rosenburg, Jacob
Sirby (Dirby?), Nicolas
Sommers, Abram
Sommers, Harriett
Vanderwarker, George
(above might be Vandewater?)
Vaness, John

Today, the ledger revisits David Beecker, Simon Groat, Abraham Mereness, John Mereness and Jacob Rosenburg, with more entries for each of them. In addition, this week's entries have a number of new names as well.

The math in prior versions wasn't adding up, and occasionally it still may not due to the vagaries of penmanship & my ability to read the old text – but I did look it up and the monetary conversion at the time provided for 20 shillings per pound, and 12 pence in each shilling... that may (or may not) make things balance a bit better!

Grab your detective hats, and on to the ledger entries!

Monday, February 14, 2011

Monday's Mystery Ledger, part 3

This is a continuation of the ledger entries I started in my Monday Mystery Ledger (posted January 31, 2011).

To repeat: The challenge, should you choose to accept it, is to try to help me figure out where this ledger (earliest date 1830) came from – patterns of names connecting to families might help narrow down the possibilities. Although I don't know for sure, it probably is from somewhere near Albany in upstate New York. The first entry is 1830. My notes and running commentary are in brackets...

When I first looked through this ledger, I wasn't sure how useful it was – but eventually I broke a couple of brick walls, finding people mentioned as “son of”, “wife of” etc. So good luck!  

Names found in the posts for previous Mondays include:

Becker, Mary
Beecker, David
Billington, James
Flansburg, Conrad
Groat, Simon
Houg, Peter M
Merenae, Abram
Mereness, John
Mereness, John Jr
Moak, Phillip
Rosenburg, Jacob
Sirby (Dirby?), Nicolas
Sommers, Abram
Sommers, Harriett
Vanderwarker, George 
(above might be Vandewater?)
Vaness, John

Today, James Billington and his son, John, take up the entire entry...

One very odd entry (near the end) is “ faling one mill sane” - and one entry for “pickling cockle” (a cockle is a small salt water clam). But don't think cockles would have kept fresh to be brought from the seashore for pickling inland – any ideas?

On to the ledger entries!

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

(my) Writing Wednesday #5

I am continuing to “spiff up” each family's chapter in the family history. My chapter on Hans Dreper and Maritie Pieters is “cooked” at least to medium well – the chapter weighs in at forty some pages (single spaced, but Verdana font). I will take it out of the oven when I get the figures, tables, maps and illustrations incorporated... But it is lookin' good! After I think it is all done, I will read it aloud for flow, then circulate for other eyes to peruse... 

Meanwhile, I have begun the spiffing up process on the chapter on Jan Janszen Schepmoes and his wife, Sara Pieterse van Naerden. Jan Janszen Schepmoes, Sara and their two children[1] immigrated to New Amsterdam aboard the fluiten (small ship), Dolphijn (Dolphin). The Dolphijn left Texel on September 7, 1637 and arrived in New Amsterdam March 28, 1638 [2] (six months!). Plagued by bad weather, a questionably unsafe ship, substandard services, and even moldy food, the trip undoubtedly was unpleasant. It may have been a small miracle that the family arrived intact after such a voyage. 

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

321st Anniversary of the Schenectady Massacre, 8th February 1690

“ … As to the causes of this bloody war, which they pretend originated with us, jealousy arising from the trading of our people...seems to be the principal one, for the Indians, that is to say, the Five Nations, were very friendly disposed toward us. The French begrudged us this and therefore made every effort to make them hostile to us …”
(Robert Livingston's contemporary account of the Schenectady Massacre[1])

On Februrary 8, 1690, the Iroquois and French attacked Schenectady in the dark of night. And the results were devastating. Burke, in his book, compares the Schenectady Massacre to other raids by the French and the Iroquois during the five year period from 1689 – 1704. During this time period, the Schenectady Massacre was by far the worst massacre in terms of fatalities (with 60 killed – the next highest was Deerfield, MA with 38 fatalities)[2] with 27 hostages taken (and a number of people died in the cold, driven out in their bedclothes). To put things in perspective, over 50% of the community died.

Willem Abrahamse (Tietsoort), [3] a Schenectady settler, was severely wounded in the massacre, but fled with his family to Esopus (Kingston), where they had friends.[4]

Willem and his wife, Neeltje Swart, had thirteen children, all of whom except Geertruy, Helena, Adrientjen, Marytje and Neeltjen were referenced in Willem's will (so may not have survived him). Of his children, Isaac, Helena, Adrientje, Marytje and Neeltjen would not have been born yet. Aaghe (Eytie), Elizabeth, Abraham, Sephanus, Jacob, Geertruy, Rebecca and Ariaantje would have been affected by the massacre.[5]

Tragically, Willem and Neeltje's nine year old daughter, Gertruy, permanently lost the use of her legs due to exposure from the extreme cold during their escape, and never walked again (see petition of 1707 where Willem asks for help because of his daughter's permanent injury).[6]


Monday, February 7, 2011

Monday's Mystery Ledger, part 2

This is a continuation of the ledger entries I started in my Monday Mystery Ledger (posted January 31, 2011).

The challenge, should you choose to accept it, is to try to help me figure out where this ledger came from – patterns of names connecting to families might help narrow down the possibilities. Although I don't know for sure, it probably is from somewhere near Albany, Schoharie counties, etc.  in upstate New York. The first entry is 1830. My notes and running commentary are in brackets...

When I first looked through this ledger, I wasn't sure how useful it was – but eventually I broke a couple of brick walls, finding people mentioned as “son of”, “wife of” etc. So good luck!

Note that in the ledger, you will see “cwt” in entries related to sawing planks. I think it might mean “cut weight” and the unit would be in 100 lb. equivalents? Anyone have a better idea?

So on to the ledger entries!

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Tulip Mania

One has to doubt un-"sourced" information about ancestors (much of which is myth, or a kernel of truth combined with wishful thinking, and some of may be an educated guess). So take a big dose of skepticism medicine here, as I am about to embark on a journey that likely is a few cups of myth, a gallon or so of wishful thinking, a pinch of an educated guess, and a few grains of truth.

One of the homes that can be identified on the Castello Map of 1660 is that of Pieter Stoutenburgh.(i) And therein lies the hero of our possible myth. In the 1800s, there was a flurry of small-run family history books published (what we might today refer to as vanity press). In early history books, as well as these family histories, we find a tale about Pieter. It seems that he has widely been credited with being the first person to bring tulips to the new world - in his pockets no less! I don't know about you, but those trips across the pond could run from 34 days (the Vergulde Vever in 1658) to well over a year (the Rensselaerswijck in 1636/37) (ii) on the high seas! I probably would have had a whole lot of things on my mind other than pretty flowers. And while there are a number of sources that say the story is true, none of them provide any support for the assertion. So if you are inclined to be gullible, it is time for an anti-gullibility inoculation.

While it could just be active imaginations that have given Pieter Stoutenburgh the role of “first to tulip” on these shores, it is plausible - there might be just a wee pinch of educated guess in there, and maybe a grain of partial truth. The Tulip Craze hit Holland in the 1630s, with everyone speculating left and right in the beautiful flowers. At the peak of the craze, in February of 1937, the price of a single tulip bulb could be driven to as much as 10 times the income of a skilled craftsman. (iii, iv)

Thursday, February 3, 2011

(my) Writing Wednesdays #4: In their own words...

I am wallowing a bit in my writing... the downed power lines in the recent storm have not helped my productivity one bit, thank you very much! And it is COLD!

However, continuing in the context vein from last week, one thing that I have begun to do as I finalize a given chapter of the family history is to include contemporary quotes either to begin the chapter or in a side bar strategically placed within the chapter. These quotes – by contemporaries of the family members – reflect day to day issues as well as the grander issues associated with the wars and hostilities of life on the frontier. Of course, what I like about the accounts of the contemporaries of the settlers is that these accounts are written the the voices of the people who observed these events as they unfolded. As a result, they provide a perspective that we might otherwise ignore or misunderstand. Sometimes, our “modern” eyes views things quite differently – for example, in last Wednesday's post, I used the example of attitudes towards divorce – then – and now. These accounts help put a family member in their own time period. Knowing how they may have experienced something “then” is, in my mind, an important part of coming to know “who” they are and in identifying with them, enriching the family history.

Today I am briefly sketching out a few of my my favorite context providers on life in colonial New Netherland. So I have selected some contemporary quote sources (with exemplar quotations) – that might provide some of that very personal view by hearing about the area, the community, the historic events – in the “voice” of someone contemporary to my family member. Of course, better yet is to hear something in their own words, but we do not always have that luxury (unless, of course, our family lines included not only pack rat genes, but also the knowledge for preserving those 300+ year old documents!)

Monday, January 31, 2011

Monday's Mystery Ledger, part 1

I came across a very old ledger – but nowhere am I told who it belonged to... I probably could figure it out if I knew where it was from, so I am hoping for some help. If we put our collective eyes and genealogical detective skills together, we might just come up with some answers.

There is a lot of information between these pages, cover to cover. Sometimes it is confusing as things don't necessarily go from page to page in chronological order... if space was found between old lines, new entries were squeezed in...

I would like some help solving a mystery, and along the way, someone might find out something about a relative... lots of names and dates in here, even if they are not in any consistent order or format. I also find it interesting what people paid for what...

When I first looked through this ledger, I wasn't sure how useful it was – but eventually I broke a couple of brick walls, finding people mentioned as “son of”, “wife of” etc. So good luck!

What I know – its a ledger – upstate New York – probably Albany, Rensslaersville, Coeymans, Greenville, Westerlo – in the general area of Albany, Schoharie County, etc... Maybe someone will notice a pattern of names that can help identify the exact community. 

It appears to be a combination of employment records and things sold, and lots of other stuff tossed in for good measure, including sawing occasional planks and a recipe here and there...

I will transcribe and post a few ledger pages on Mondays and hope for the best. I will do the transcription in page order, which means the dates will jump around a bit. Maybe our collective noggins can solve the mystery of where it was (names should help) and who it might have belonged to... So here we go! My notes and running commentary are in brackets...

[The ledger is “hard bound” although coming loose a bit – remarkable condition for almost 200 years. Inside front cover, there is a glued on stamp about the size of a business card, that is affixed to the upper left corner.]

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

My Writing Wednesdays #3: Something Fishy...

A cold and blustery weekend, with ice (and 12" of snow last Thursday & Friday), made for a good "indoors" weekend... so I returned to one of my favorite families, Hans Dreper and Maritie Pieters. Maritie had a reputation for "petty quarreling." [1] She also said what was on her mind, and apparently didn't candy coat her opinions either - a tendency that occasionally placed her in a courtroom. So pigs weren't the only thing that gave Hans and Maritie headaches... on at least one occasion, fish did too!

Maritie evidently had been shopping for herring on a warm spring day (plankton eaters, herrings tend to be plentiful in the cool northern waters from May through August, a time when they are high in fat yet before mating season... the herring were caught in nets and and salt bine-cured in large barrels, sometimes with the addition of spices - the exact recipes were, of course, secret...). With different recipes for curing herring, obviously, herring purchased from one vender or another might be more or less to a given individual's liking.

Saturday, January 22, 2011

The Book Nook: Beverwijk, by Janny Venema


My Book Nook includes my take on books I have found useful - if not essential - in researching the Dutch Colonial line of my family tree. From time to time, I will post and review some of my favorite books in the Book Nook (as well as some of those I picked up and thought were duds). Like all self-selected lists, my Book Nook is idiosyncratic and reflects my preferences and interests. I should also give you a fair warning - I love books and read several a week (I also don't sleep a lot). Some books I plan to review here in the Book Nook are very old and no longer in print, but a review may help you to determine if you want to go to the effort of finding the book on interlibrary loan. Other books may just have been released. I have amassed a vast collection over the years; some books I have found useful and some not so useful. But enough... on to the book for the edition of the Book Nook.

BEVERWIJK: A DUTCH VILLAGE ON THE AMERICAN FRONTIER, 1652 TO 1654 (by Janny Venema, State University of NY Press, Albany, 2003).

    I found this book to be an absolute treasure. So now that we have that out of the way, some details. Based on her doctoral dissertation, Ms Venema presents a fascinating view of quite a cross section of the lives of the settlers of this outpost "upriver" on the Hudson. As only a dissertation can do, she looks at vast a number of aspects concerning the lives of the settlers that are hard, if not impossible, to find in a single volume. 

For example, Ms. Venema takes the reader through the building of the settlement, how the village was laid out and land distributed, how the settlers dealt with poverty amongst their neighbors, their educational system, the Orphan Masters, medical care, and slavery, to name just a few. In each area she covers, Ms Venema provides background information, as well as rich detail. She incorporates snippets of information on the various settlers - great and small - to demonstrate her points. These snippets on the settlers provide a priceless view of many of the settlers, utilizing the skills of a detailed and meticulous researcher. It is these details that may help you fill out your own family history, and possibly find someone who has been "missing".

Many books of this type are a rather dry recounting of facts and statistics. While Ms Venema provides a strong dose of statistics and numbers, she also adds what is missing in so many other volumes: the context - the backdrop against which the settlers of Beverwijk played out their petty quarrels and experienced their triumphs. Ms. Venema also explores key professions, such as blacksmiths, bakers, brewers and tavern keepers. Rather than merely highlighting these categories of workers, you will find detailed tables telling you who did what and when, allowing you to trace your ancestors and their economic endeavors across time.  

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

(my) Writing Wednesdays #2

Or also known as: How I am trying to write a family history even my grandkids will want to read 
Just what stage of my writing am I at? I hope I am beyond procrastination... and that I will move things towards fruition rather quickly this year. BUT! It wouldn't make me feel very happy if my kids and grandkids took snoozers while reading my great tome (or worse yet, quit and went to play a video game). I can't just gin out the facts or the snoozer route is a definite possibility here. My solution is to provide some context "up front." Without context, it is really hard to imagine what is going on...

Imagine for a minute that I am describing a task to you that I want you to complete. I say, "It really is simple. First you get everything together in one place. Then you separate everything into different groups, unless there isn't much, in which case just one group will do. Although generally it is best to do fewer at a time, or you can end up making expensive mistakes. And really, the end of this task seems to never be in sight. Once the task is finished for the time being, however, you have to arrange everything into different groups again and then put them in their correct place." 

Not a particularly clear set of instructions, is it?

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Moving right along...

It has been a bit of a busy week, but so far I am keeping with my resolution pace of at least four hours a week on the family history. I am still "detailing" the chapter on Pieter Stoutenburgh and Aefje van Tienhoven. By today's standards, they were quite the bunny rabbits (figuratively speaking) with at least nine children baptized in the Dutch Reformed Church. It appears, however, that the majority of their children did not survive childhood - perhaps that was one reason why Pieter worked for the OrphanMasters and even took in an orphan or two now and then.
  • Enjeltje [Angelica] was baptized 20th August 1651. Rachel van Tienhoven, Aeltje's sister-in-law, is listed as the baptismal sponsor. Unfortunately, Enjeltie lived only a year, dying before sometime before 1652. 

Friday, January 14, 2011

It's COLD in them thar hills!

It has been soooo cold! I sometimes claim that I left Minnesota after my first year on the job there it snowed eighteen inches on Halloween – and I am only half joking. I really hate being cold. Okay, that is Part 1 (stay with me on this). Part 2 is that I realized I never delivered on my I might turn to Willem Abrahamse Tietsoort and his battle with a bear on Manhattas (Manhattan),” in my earlier posting (New Years Eve). So just keep those “Parts” in mind as you struggle hopelessly to find the common thread in today's post. 

Willem & the Bear (via some background information) 
Abraham Willemszen and Aechtje Jans had a son, Willem Abrahamse Tietsort, who was born in 1648 and baptized 2nd August of that year in Nieuw Amsterdam.i Abraham, who was a carpenter, was tragically killed in a duel on 12th November 1649. He died on the 13th,ii leaving his 18 month old son and a pregnant wife. His wife remarried the widower, Pieter Casparszen van Naerden sometime between 1649 and 1652 (when her first child with Pieter Casparszen was born). Essentially our Willem was raised by his stepfather. One can imagine that Pieter took his new role to heart, and raised the boy as his own, teaching him the “manly” arts of hunting and fishing. 

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

(my) Writing Wednesdays, #1

Or also known as: how I am trying to write a family history even my grandkids will want to read
I have been collecting information for about 15 - 20 years now, but the detail work on the family history just never seems quite cooked (or I may have convinced myself to believe that because the task ahead is so daunting!). However, consistent with my New Years resolution for 2011, I decided I had better start writing. Now. As in today... I was waiting to dot every "i" and cross every "t", but I wasn't getting any information "out there" for my kids and grandkids. Quite simply, with a few thousand names I was working on (including siblings, etc.), I was overwhelmed. And I do have a day job. So before sitting down to write, I had to figure out how to divide my task into workable "chunks" (and then recognize that I might occasionally be issuing "supplements" for family members as new information become available - let's get realistic here). 

At this point, my first step was to find a good organizing theme. Although I could start "in the beginning" and organize from greatest grandparent forward, even I find this a bit tedious and at times downright confusing to be readling and simultaneously trying to keep track of everyone. I could also start "at the end"

Saturday, January 8, 2011

Relaxed - kind of...

Well, in the brief hiatus I spent some time in a log cabin with no TV. Yes, boys and girls, you heard me right - there was no television set. Much like our ancestors, we had to make due with a variety of parlor games. So I got to thinking, what type of parlor games did the settlers of New Amsterdam play, assuming they had the time? So I did what any red blooded 21st century person would do - I googled it! What I found really interesting is that the game of Double Dutch - which is now a competitive varsity sport in New York's public schools - (you know the one - two jump ropes) was probably played by the people who lived in New Amsterdam at the time of the Castello Map.  If you don't believe me, check it out for yourself by clicking Double Dutch