Snohomish Interlude

Rumors abound that the blogger fell into a Blog Hole, something like a black hole, and equally difficult to explain. Actually, I've been roaming the Pacific Northwest -- specifically the area from Seattle, north to Mt. Baker, east through North Cascades National Park, and south to Wenatchee on the Columbia. I have not seen Sasquatch, but have seen a wingless Boeing 737 fuselage on a flatbed rail car in Wenatchee on its way to the the Boeing assembly plant at Everett.

Genealogy is to blame for this trip.  The trip began with two fantastic days at the Northwest Genealogy Conference in Arlington, Washington. This is the third annual conference put on by the Stillaguamish Valley Genealogical Society. The headliners were Blaine Bettinger and Lisa Louise Cook. What a treat! There was an outstanding complement of other speakers, but I didn't get to hear them because I was busy giving four presentations myself.

After the conference closed on Saturday, I did attempt a small genealogy excursion. My wife's grandmother's sister drifted from Minnesota to Snohomish County, Washington. I don't know much about her life, but she died in Snohomish County in 1969.  From Findagrave.com, I knew that she was buried in the G.A.R. Cemetery just outside the town of Snohomish. Thinking a G.A.R. cemetery in Washington was probably a small, walkable cemetery, I expected to easily find the grave. But, the cemetery was much larger than expected and it was a hot dry day. The grass burned to a crisp. The sun glared off the flat grave markers. The sections were not visibly numbered. The office was closed. There was no cemetery map. I did not find Kate Jackson or her husband, Samuel.

Monday took us north to Lynden, an area where Dutch immigrants first arrived in the late 1800s. Some Dutch folk from Siouxland (NW Iowa and adjoining parts of Minnesota and South Dakota) sought greener pastures in Whatcom County in the early 1900s. Among them was John Zylstra and his wife, Marie Zorgdrager. Marie was my Dad's cousin. I have misty memories of visiting their farm east of Lynden, near Sumas, in 1962 -- a trip centered on the Seattle World's Fair. John and Marie had five children, the youngest of them twin daughters who were just a year older than me. It dawns on me now that they were 2nd cousins!

I know nothing of what happened to the twins, but John died in 1990 and Marie in 1993. They are buried in a small cemetery at Nooksack, in the shadow of the Cascades. This gravestone I found.

I paid my respects -- although I'm not sure what that phrase means. I think it means I remembered them, however vaguely. I did not know them well, but they were important relatives to my Dad. I would like to find out what happened to the twins.

The Ikea Effect -- Dutch and Ostfries in Illinois

Picking up where we left off last week... So, Sipke Zorgdrager went to Illinois in 1868 because his sister and brother-in-law had gone the previous year and, presumably, sent back good reports. Of course, the next question is, why did Foppe de Graaf and Jantje Zorgdrager settle at Ridott?

The answer to that question is simple enough. Several Terschelling families had settled in Illinois in 1865. They included Winterberg, A. A. Roos, C. C. Schaap, L. H. Smit, C. Naber, H. P. Kooyman
J. A. Roos, C. R. Buren, and W. W. Brower. Arjen and Jan Roos were brothers. This group appears to be the first significant batch of Terschellingers to leave the island for the Illinois prairie. But, why did they go to Illinois?

The key figure is Winterberg. He was Hendrik Fredrick Theodore Winterberg, a 32 year-old hoofdonderweizer (headmaster). Hendrik Winterberg, a native of Hengelo in the eastern Netherlands province of Overijssel, married Ikea Dirks Ammerman 22 May 1862. You might remember that my great-grandfather Sipke Zorgdrager married Tryntje de Vries exactly one week earlier -- Sipke's marriage registration was no. 9 in 1862; the Winterberg marriage was no. 10.

That is quite a coincidence, but what really matters for this story is what the marriage registration tells about Ikea Ammerman. It recorded that Ikea was born at "Bunder Baulande, ook genaamd Bunderhei, in Hanover" --  Bunder Baulande also known as Bunderhei in Hanover, Germany. It turns out that a handful of Ostfriesen families had emigrated from Germany to the Stephenson County area by 1860. Among the 1864 immigrants arriving at New York on the Bremen was Wubbe Dirks Ammerman -- Ikea's brother. (It is not certain where he settled originally, but he was in Stephenson County in 1880.) This, no doubt, explains why Hendrik Winterberg and Ikea set out for Stephenson County.

S.S. Bremen passenger manifest, New York, 1964

The 1870 census of Ridott and Germany Valley townships found Dutch, including Sipke Zorgdrager, living among families from Hannover and "Os. Friesland." Terschelling is only about a hundred miles down the coast from Ostfriesland (East Friesland), so it should probably not be surprising that the Terschellingers and Ostfries had connections of some sort -- perhaps fishing or some other kind of commerce. The key may have been religion. In 1829, a young Ostfries dominie (minister) was called to the Midsland church on Terschelling. Marten Geerds Polman served at Midsland until his retirement in 1869. Ikea Ammerman was his niece; she had probably come to Terschelling to keep house for her uncle.
 

Most of the Illinois and Iowa Terschellingers came from the middle part of the island -- Midsland and the small hamlets of Kinnum and Landerum. The first 14 men to leave in 1865 and 1867 were married, with children. After the initial departures, the migrants were a mix of families and single men. The 1868 departures included 11 families and seven single men. The emigrants almost certainly all knew each other. Many were closely related -- often brothers, sisters, or in-laws. Many of them eventually ended up in Sioux County in far northwest Iowa, where my Dutch roots are sunk.

A Family Affair -- Ridott or Bust

One of the benefits of spending time in the records of a place -- whether viewed live, on microfilm, or on the Internet -- is that you become familiar with names you might encounter elsewhere as you research your family history. Such was the case with the Terschelling civil registrations (births, marriages, deaths) and the Midsland parish records (baptisms, marriages, burials).

As you might recall, Sipke Zorgdrager landed in Ridott, Stephenson County, Illinois, after his 1868 migration. Scrolling through the census, other Terschelling names appeared, including Cupido, de Vries, de Graaf, Limburg, and Schaap -- although some were fairly badly mangled by the census enumerator. Obviously, this spot on the prairie had triggered at least a small-scale chain migration.

1870 Census, Stephenson Co. IL

Sipke Zorgdrager, written something more like Seipke Syadager, was living in the household of Peter "de Fries" (see February 11 post).  Peter was Pieter de Vries, the older brother of Sipke's wife, Tryntje de Vries. This caused me to wonder if other members of Sipke's and Tryntje's Terschelling families had also emigrated to Illinois. Time spent correlating information from Dutch civil registration records, emigration records, and U.S. Census records said "yes."

Tryntje de Vries had  six siblings. At least three emigrated, all leaving Terschelling in 1868 -- probably at the same time as their sister and Sipke Zorgdrager.

Maria married Johannes Cornelis Schaap. They also left Terschelling in 1868. They were in Stephenson County in 1870, but by 1880 Johannes was in Washington Township in the far northwest corner of Butler County. Maria was absent; she had died shortly after the family went to Iowa.

Jan married Geertje Cornelis Groendijk. They, too, left Terschelling in 1868,  and were settled in Etna Township, Hardin County, Iowa, in 1870. Their 1 year-old daughter had been born in Illinois -- likely in Stephenson County -- suggesting their move to Iowa was late 1869 or early 1870.

Pieter married Maamke Cornelis Bos. They left Terschelling in 1868, and made room in their Illinois home for Sipke's family in 1870. By 1880, they moved on the to far northwest corner of Butler County, Iowa, just a few miles from  where his brother Jan lived in 1870.

Sipke Zorgdrager had five brothers and sisters. Three emigrated.

Jantje Zorgdrager and Foppe de Graaf, Newkirk Cemetery

Jantje married Foppe Dirks de Graaf. They left Terschelling in 1867, a year before Sipke. By 1870,they were living next door to Jan Pieters de Vries (John De Fries) in Etna Township, Hardin County, Iowa. Foppe and Jantje had apparently paused at least briefly in Illinois, because their 2 year-old son had been born in Illinois.

Andries married Tyntje Iemkes Kooyman; she died on Terschelling in 1862. Andries remarried to Keyke Hek. They emigrated in 1868, probably along with Sipke. They lived in Etna Township, Hardin County, Iowa, in 1870 (clearly entered as "Andrew," but indexed "Anchises Sorgadrane"). The family might have gone straight to Iowa; they certainly didn't stay long in Illinois, because their 1-year-old daughter had been born in Iowa.

Jan married Neeltje Cornelis Swart. Jan was the laggard, not leaving Terschelling until 1882. He was, after all, the youngest child of Pieter Zorgdrager and Martje Cupido. By this time, they probably went directly to Sioux County in northwest Iowa, where Sipke and his other siblings ended up. Their son, Pieter, was born in March 1880. A daughter, Jennie, was born in Iowa about 1883 (1900 U.S. Census, O'Brien County, Iowa). Jan's (and Sipke's) father probably emigrated at the same time. The elder Pieter was living with Sipke Zorgdrager in Holland Township of Sioux County in 1875.


When I searched the Ancestry.com index for Netherlands-born families in the 1870 census, I saw several families from "OS Friesland." At first, this made sense, because Terschelling lies just off the coast of Friesland, a northern province of the Netherlands. But, when I also saw near neighbors from Hanover (in northwestern Germany), I realized that "OS" stood for  "Ost," as in Ost-Friesland, a distinct area in northwestern Germany along the Netherlands border.

The question arose: Is there a good explanation for why the Dutch Terschellingers settled in Illinois amongst the Ostfries? I will tackle that question next week (hopefully) when I write about what I call the Ikea Effect.

The Gold in Dutch Civil Marriage Records -- The Zorgdrager File

Marriage records are among the most sought-after genealogical records because they often state the age of the bride and groom, as well as the names of their parents. American records, which vary widely across states and time, often give little more than the bride's and groom's age, but European records are often genealogical gold mines.

Dutch civil registrations of marriages commonly give information about age, birthplace, current residence, occupation, and parents' names, age, and occupation. The May 1862 marriage registration of Sipke Zorgdrager and Tryntje Jans de Vries provides the following information.

Sipke Zorgdrager-Tryntje de Vries marriage, excerpted from Terschelling civil registrations*

• Sipke was a 22 years-old and born at Terschelling.
• He was a zeeman (sailor).
• His father, Pieter Andries Zorgdrager, was a farmer living at Terschelling.
• His mother was Martje Pieters Cupido.
• His bride, Tryntje, was the 22 year-old daughter of Jan Pieters de Vries and Trijntje Douwes Cupido.
• Witnesses for the groom were Pieter Pieters Zorgdrager, a 29 year-old zeeman, and Tijs Dirks Pals, a 21 year-old zeeman.
• Witnesses for the bride were Pieter Jans de Vries, a 33 year-old farmer -- and identified as the brother of the bride -- and Cornelis Johannes Schaap, a 38-year old farmer.

 As you may recall, my grandmother, Kate Zorgdrager, was a daughter of Sipke Zorgdrager and Tryntje de Vries. The information marriage record alone, is a good start for sketching out Kate Zorgdrager's family tree -- We have names, ages and occupations of both sets of grandparents, plus the name of an uncle on her mother's side. Pieter Pieters Zorgdrager was probably Tryntje's brother. The other two witnesses likely were near neighbors, possibly even related.

The document carries the signatures of  all involved:

S Zorgdrager [Sipke Zorgdrager]
T J de Vries [Trijntje Jans de Vries]
P A Zorgdrager [Pieter Andries Zorgdrager -- father of groom]
T D Cupido [Trijntje Douwes Cupido -- mother of bride]
 P P Zorgdrager [Pieter Pieters Zorgdrager -- brother of groom]
Tijs D Pals [second witness for groom]
P J de Vries [Pieter Jans de Vries -- brother of bride]
J C Schaap [second witness for bride]

C Ruyg was the official who signed for the municipality.

The bride's father, Jan Pieters de Vries, is absent because he had died in 1856.


The amount of information in the civil registrations makes it easy to follow a family back in time to 1811; before 1811, church records document births, marriages and burials.

In this case, I quickly discovered two things of interest. First, when he married in 1831, Sipke's father, Pieter Andries Zorgdrager, was a schipper (skipper). While it might have been a small boat, I like the idea of having a schipper ancestor. The same record stated that Pieter Andries' father, Andries Pieters, was a winkeler (shopkeeper). That's also a first in my family! However, when he died in 1856 Andries Pieters -- yes, the names get confusing -- was a plain old farmer.

Second, Sipke Zorgdrager and Tryntje de Vries were 2nd cousins -- not a particularly unusual thing, especially on an island in the North Sea. Sipke's mother, Martje Pieters Cupido, and Tryntje's mother, Trijntje Douwes Cupido were both granddaughters of Pieter Willems Cupido and Tryntje Jongkin. Next week -- perhaps -- I will show the evidence from church records.

* Digital image from Alle Friezen, https://www.allefriezen.nl/.

What's in a Name?

What's in a name? Heck, what was the name?

This is the story of my Dutch grandmother's name. I really never knew her -- our lives overlapped by only about 18 months. I guess I must have heard my Dad and my uncles and aunts talk about her. I'm not certain, but I think they called her Kate --- when they didn't call her Ma.

She was known as Kate when shed died in 1951. Her obituary in the Sioux County Capital named her Kate. She is Kate on her gravestone. My Dad had entered her name as Kate Zorgdrager in some primitive home-made family group sheets he created on his pre-electric, heavy as an anvil, manual typewriter. In the early 1990s, when I started researching her ancestry, I did not have access to the 1930 or 1940 censuses, but both the 1910 and 1920 censuses recorded her as Kate. She was Kate in the registration of her 1903 marriage to Jan (aka John) Fonkert. She has eluded my searches in the 1900 census; she was not living with her parents in Holland Township.

Jan Fonkert and Kate Zorgdrager, 1903

From the marriage record, I knew that her parents were Sipke Zorgdrager and Trijntje de Vries. Censuses told me that Kate was born about 1883 or 1884 in Iowa.  I wish I could accurately remember the chain of events behind the story I am about to tell. Suffice it to say, it took me several years to fully understand why this beautiful Dutch girl was known as Kate.

At some point (back in the microfilm days, as I recall), I found the Zorgdrager family in the 1885 Iowa census of Sioux County. Sipke Zorgdrager had a 1-year old child named Tryntje. I had been expecting Kate. Sipke's wife was also named Trynte, I was  mostly convinced that Kate and  1-year old Trijntje were one and the same. However, I didn't see how Tryntje could have become Kate.

Even my Dad's birth certificate -- a "delayed" certificate issued in  1950 -- named his mother "Kate." Birth registrations for his sister, Nellie, and brother, Peter, also called their mother Kate.

Now comes the part I wish I could remember better. I had learned that that the Zorgdragers had come from Terschelling, a North Sea island just of the coast of Friesland, a northern province of The Netherlands. Using the WieWasWie index (http://www.wiewaswie.nl) of Dutch civil registration records, I can sort of reconstruct how I figured this all out.  First, I found several young girls on Terschelling named Catharina. Even more interesting, I found the K-version of the name fairly common on the mainland: Katharina, Katrijn, Katrijne. On Terschelling, I found many young girls named Trijntje.

If I had only had at hand a copy of Christine Rose's Nicknames Past and Present I could have just looked it up. In an appendix of Dutch and Frisian names, she states that Katrijn is the Dutch equivalent of Catherine and that the English names Kate or Kathleen derive from Katryntje.

It dawned on me that "Tryjn" was a shortened version of Kathrijn or Katharina. The, their was the matter of the "je" at the end of the name. At some point, I learned that the suffix "je" is a diminutive applied to female names, literally meaning small, but in the case of names indicating affection.

When I was struggling with these names 20 years ago, the Internet was in its infancy. Now, you can find numerous articles, and even a few videos about the "je" suffix. The first one I clicked on hit the spot. Try https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTo31XqnhEk/.

So, was Tryntje a casual version of something like Trynt? Not quite. It turns out that Tryntje was a shortened version of  Kathryntje. Yep, Tryntje was derived from Katherina, and of course, in America Tryntje was anglicized to Kate.

 Only when I found my great-grandfather's will did I see an official record calling her Tryntje. Sipke Zorgdrager willed a portion of his estate to Tryntje Fonkert, and when she gave a receipt for $20 from the estate, she signed her name "Tryntje Fonkert." Kate's given name was Tryntje.

So, what's in a name? Would you care to guess about Zorgdrager? I will dig deeper into the Zorgdragers next week.

A final note on spelling -- The "y" in Tryntje is not really the letter "y." Instead, it is the Dutch letter ÿ, representing a "long i." Today, it is commonly typed as "ij." So, you might see either either Tryntje or Trijntje instead of Trÿntje. You can type "ÿ" by holding down the alt-key while typing 0255.