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Jan Hendrik Roerdink Veldboom (Jr)

Born: 18 Aug 1841, Winterswijk Municipality, Netherlands; on farm ‘Roerdink-Nijweide’ in the neighborhood Woold.

 

Parents: Gerrit Jan Roerdink-Veldboom and Aleida Wiggers

 

Siblings: Hanna, Dora, Geisina

 

Emmigration: Immigrated to US in 1868 or 1869

 

Occupation: Wheelright in Holland, farmer in US

 

Marriage: to Janna Ros 5/17/1867 Winterswijk, Holland

 

Children: Gerrit Jan (1867-1874/75), Gerrit William (1870-1870 - died at 25 days old), Gerrit William “Will” (1871-1939), Willemina (Minnie) Aleida (1874-1874, died at 3 months), Minnie Aleies (1875-1965), Garret (1876/7-1933), Garret Jan “John Henry” (1878-1941), J. Henry “Hank” (1881-1956)

 

Death: 1882, Sheboygan Co, WI. Cause unknown, age 40. Buried unknown; tombstone decayed.

 

Miscellaneous:

Before surnames were commonly used (1800’s and before), many families took on the last name of the farm they lived on.  We think of farms as a piece of property owned and run by one family; in the Netherlands at that time tracts of land were granted to anyone bringing 50 or more settlers to the area. They then became tennants subject to the landlords rule, a feudalistic  state. Therefore there could be several related or unrelated families living “on the farm”, when in fact they all had seperate farms within “the farm.”  They would then share the last name of the farm they lived on, but often had some identifying name added to the farm name. In our case it was Roerdink-Veldboom; Veldboom meaning barrier or boom. It was also common for a male to take on the name of his newly married wife’s farm if he moved in with them.

Jan Hendrik’s grandparents were the last to live on the farm Roerdink-Veldboom, and between 1812 and 1823 moved to the Roerdink-Nijweide farm, however they did not change their last name with this move. This farm was torn down sometime around 1915-1920. The original family farm, Roerdink-Veldboom still stands in altered form and is called Pashutte.

After Jan Hendrik’s marriage to Janna Ros, he moved to his in-laws farm called Manskamp, also in the neighborhood Woold. All of the people on this farm emmigrated to the US at the same time.

 

Census:

1880 WI Census, Sheboygan Co, Lima township:
John Roerdink, age 39, married, farmer, born Holland, parents born in Holland; Jana, wife age 41, keeping house, born in Holland, parents born in Holland;  William age 8, attending school, born WI; Mena (female - Minnie) age 5 born WI; Garret age 3, born WI; John age 2, born WI

 

Notes from Ralph Veldboom, written 1988:

Our paternal ancestors descended from the original inhabitants of the farm “Roerdink Veldboom” which still exists in altered form and is today called “Pashutte”. Veldboom got its name by it’s situation near a boom or barrier. In fomer times farmers protected their cultivated grounds against animals by means of a rampart or thornhedge. Where the road leading to the moor (generally called a ‘veld’), crossed this rampart or hedge they laid a barrier or ‘boom’. Our ancestral farm stood near this gate, the ‘veldboom’ of the estate Roerdink.

Jan Hendrik Roerdink Veldboom Sr, grandfather of the Jan Hendrik of this autobiography, was the last of the branch of the family to live on the farm ‘Roerdink-Veldboom’, from which our ancestors took their family name.  Somewhere between 1812 and 1823, they moved to ‘Roerdink-Nijweide’ (new pasture), also in the neighborhood Woold, where they lived together with their son Gerrit Jan, his wife, and children. Here Jan Hnedrik Jr. grew up and lived until his marriage May 17, 1867 in Winterswijk with Janna Ros. He joined his parents-in-law who lived on the farm ‘Manskamp’. also in the neighborhood Woold. Their oldest son Garrit Jan was born here on July 29, 1867. In 1869 all inhabitants of the farm “Manskamp’ emigrated to the states. Jan Hnedrik’s parent’s in-law also came to Wisconsin.

Jan Hendrik’s father died in 1848 when Jan Hnedrik was only 6 years old. His step father was Jan Hendrik Wiggers. Jan Hendrik’s family did not want him to leave the Netherlands.

Jan Hendrik and Janna, along with their 2 year old son Gerrit Jan settled on a farm in the Gibbsville area. The farm is approximately 2 miles west and 1 mile north of the current Gibbsville Cheese Factory. The farm was a square 40 acres on the southeast corner of the intersection.

Uncle Will (Gerrit William) was born 11/30/1871 in Wisconsin. He said that when he was 4 or 5 years old, the older boy (Gerrit Jan) became sick and feverish and begged for a drink of water, but the doctor thought it would hurt him, so they withheld the water, and the boy died. Uncle Will regretted that they couldn’t give him water.

Reports are that Jan Hendrik did well here. However, after he died, times were harder. His wife, Janna, raised turkeys to sell in the dall to help pay doctor bills. Then shortly before Thanksgiving, someone stole all the turkeys.

Jan Hendrik Roerdink Veldboom and his wife Janna are buried in unmarked graves west of Gibbsville, nearly across the road from the current Ongna sawmill.

Of the 8 children born to this couple, 5 reached adulthood. Jan Hendrik died when the youngest child, J. Henry (Hank) was 1 year old. Neither Will or Minnie had children.

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