Z is for Zwahlen Ancestry

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is Z for Zwahlen.

Magdalena Zwahlen was my 8th great-grandmother. I know nothing about her except that in 1702 she married Michael Jeremiah George Miller in Zweisimmen, Bern, Switzerland.

Since I know nothing about my 8th great grandparents, let me tell you about their daughter Barbara Ann Miller born circa 1707.

Barbara Ann Miller married Nicholas Bieri circa 1720 in the Palatinate. Barbara could write and after Nicholas' death in 1761 she served as adminstratrix of her husband's estate.

Minutes of the Board of Property Lands in Pennsylvania: At a special metting of ye Agents at ye Governors the 5th Oct'r. 1765:
On the motion of Mr. Weiss for [Barbara] Peery, widow of Nicho's Peery ye Gover'r orders y't ye Surv'r Gen'l shall in 3 Mo's make enquiry whether ye 500 a's Right sold by the H'rs of Rich'd Crosby to Philip Ebrecht was not located by s'd Crosby in his life time.

As administrix of Nicholas' estate, Barbara entered a caveat on 5 Dec. 1765 against a survey for Nicholas King which took off valuable land from the estate of Nicholas Beery. A new survey on 22 July 1766 showed the fence line agreed upon when nicholas sold the land to Nicholas King, and the dispute was resolved in favour of Nicholas Beery.

Pennsylvania Caveat Book NO. 3. Land Office, 5 Dec. 1765: Barbara Peery, the Widow of Nicholas Peery and adminstrix of his Estate in behalf of herself and children entreth a Caveat against a Survey lateley made by Charles Lukens, Deputy Surveyor for one N.....olas King by which Survey is taken of a Valuable piece of meadow and orchard late ye Estate of the said Nicholas Peery and contained in a Survey for him made the 11 day of Sept. 1761. Dated Phliad'a. Dec. 5, 1765.

Barbara married as her second husband between 28 July 1766 and 9 June 1767, Jacob Kagy, farmer of Heidelberg Township, York Co. PA. On 19 Oct 1765 Jacob had been warrantee of 50 acres adjoining his other land in Heidelberg Township in Conewago Valley. This land was surveyed at 51 acres and allowance.

On 9 June 1767 Barbara and Jacob and 8 of the 9 children of Barbara and her first husband, Nicholas Beery, released to Abraham Beery, the other son, all right or dower right, title and claim in the estate and property of Nicholas Beery in Manchester Tp. consisting of two tracts of land, 143 acres and 60.5 acres, and all the buildings and improvements theron.

Jacob and Barbara were still alive on 10 Nov. 1787 when Jacob made his will. He states he is living in Heidelberg Township, York Co. PA.  See Jacob Kagy's notes for his will.

Y is For Yorkshire Ancestors

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is Y for Yorkshire

My youngest son has Yorkshire ancestors through his father's Schulze lineage. I don't have any that I know of (yet).

Georg Heinrich (Henry) Christian Schulze was born (out of wedlock) in the City of Hannover on 18 December 1840 and baptized at Market Church on 4 April 1841. His mother was listed as Sophie Wilhelmine Reinecke, of Hannover, and as the father of the child the mother indicated Heinrich Christian Schulze, of Goslar, who was a foreman in a cutting-factory at that time. Among the godparents of the child were Georg Christian and Georg Heinrich Reinecke (who were brothers of the child's mother.


Henry Schulze emigrated to Yorkshire England circa 1868. We do not know if he was married when he arrived, or married later in England, but no marriage has been found in England. His wife's name was Marie (Mary) Catharina Friederke Gercken and she had been issued travel documents in 1867 as a single woman. Her immigration record has not been found.

For more details on the Schulze family in England, and the Schulze lineage in Germany, please see my book The Schulze Family of Germany & Yorkshire England


The Schulze Family of Germany & Yorkshire England
 
 Georg Heinrich Christian (Henry) Schulze, a skilled cabinet maker, left Germany for Yorkshire England between 1867 and 1868. He and his wife Marie Catharina Friederke (Mary) Gercken settled in Bradford where their ten children were born.

W is for Walloon

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is W for Walloon

Walloons come from Belgium and have many historical and cultural similarities with Huguenots from France.

I have written a book about one Walloon immigrant who settled in New Amsterdam (now New York City), New Netherland.

New Netherland Settlers: A Walloon in New Amsterdam:: Adriaen Vincent and his Wife Magdaleen Eloy - 2nd edition! available on Amazon

Adriaen Vincent, a Walloon from Belgium, made the perilous journey to New Netherland with his wife Magdaleen and their young family in the early 1640s. 

A former West Indies Company soldier, Adriaen was embarking on a new life. The family settled in the village of New Amsterdam, which would one day become the city of New York. Life could not have been easy for the couple, faced with a different culture and language. But settlers were pouring in and New Amsterdam was flourishing. 

Within a few years Adriaen and Magdaleen opened a tavern which catered to sailors and new arrivals. Their fortunes soon took a turn for the better and the family settled into their new life. This book contains new information on the family in the Netherlands and New Netherland, as well as details on descendants of Adriaen and Magdaleen

V is for Van Names

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is V for Van Names. I have several, all from Holland. They all ended up in New Netherland (present day New York) in the 17th century. You can read about some of them on my New Netherland Settlers section.

Vanderburg
Van Alstyne
Van Horn
Van Rottmer
Van Slyke
Van Schaik
Van Woert
Van Valkenburg

T is for Tightrope Walker

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is T for Tightrope Walker and yes, I have one in my family tree.

So today I want to tell you about my very adventurous 2nd cousin 3x removed, Stephen Peer the Tightrope Walker of Niagara Falls. I've talked about Stephen before on this blog but he gets another spot. He is the only tightrope walker to be killed on the wire. He was killed in 1887 and to this day there are rumours of murder.

Here are some of his adventures as noted in various newspapers of the day.

"Daredevils of the Falls".
It was unusually windy on June 22, 1887, but Peer gave his performance as scheduled. His five-eighths inch cable was a mere thread compared to the heavier ropes of his prdecessors, and the wire was held steady by 20-30 guy wires and weighted down between them with 12-20 sandbags, each weighing about 35 lbs. His walk was a complete success, and he returned to Canada in a carriage via the suspension bridge, welcomed by thousand sof applauding spectators. Three days later he was dead, discovered on the gorge bank below his cable. The reason for his death remains a mystery, but stories suggest murder.

Peer performed under his own billing for the first time on June 22, 1887. His performance was free, but a collection box was passed through the crowd. Somewhere along the way, Peer had gained the title of Professor and added an extra "e" to his surname for effect. [Prof. Steve Peere] HIs first 'official' ropewalk took place between the Great Western's suspension bridge and the Michigan Central's cantilever bridge. These bridges were replaced by the present Whirlpool Rapids Bridge and the Penn Central Bridge, in 1897 and 1925 respectively.

From "History of Welland County"
"On Wed. June 22 [1887] Stephen Peer of Niagara Falls outdid Blondin by walking across the Niagara River between the cantilever and suspension bridges on a wire rope only 5/8ths of an inch in diameter. This is the first occassion on which Niagara River was ever crossed on so slender a rope. The elevation was about 200 ft from the water. Peer carried a balancing pole twenty-one feet in length and of forty-five pound weight. He got a collection of $35.00 for his daring, but reckless deed. On the Sat. evening following, Peer either fell or jumped over the bank or off his cable. He had been drinking heavily, went out from the hotel and was last seen alive near his rope. Not returning soon, a search was made and his body was found down the bank under the cable dying from the effects of the fall. And thus was added another but not unexpected victim to Niagara."

S is For Swiss Ancestors

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is S for Swiss Ancestors. My Swiss ancestors were Mennonites. I only have a few:

• Burkholder Mennonite Genealogy - Ancestry of Jacob Burkholder of Hamilton Ontario (Switzerland to Pennsylvania to Ontario)
• Gingrich Mennonite Genealogy - Gingrich Family, Switzerland to Pennsylvania to Ontario
• Hunsicker Mennonite Genealogy - Hunsicker, Hunsecker, Hunsiker, Hunziger, Huntzinger and Hunsucker families of Switzlerland 

I have not done in-depth research except on the Burkholder line but if you have these surnames in your tree, feel free to drop me an email or leave a comment below. 

R is for Rogues

Nov. 21, 1879 Guelph Daily Mercury

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is R for Rogues. We all love a good rogue in our family tree. I have several - ancestors I wouldn't call criminals but definitely rogues.

For instance my great grandfather Alexander McGinnis was fined for selling liquor in the City Park.

Nov. 21, 1879 Guelph Daily Mercury. Local News. Alex. McGinnis of Puslinch, fined for selling liquor without a license in the Agricultural Park, has made arrangements with the Inspector for the payment of the fine, and therefore is not in gaol.
 
Who are the rogues in your family tree?

Q is for Quackley

1629 Marriage Judith Quackley & John Stevens

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is Q for Quackley. I'll be interested if I connect with any other Quackley descendants!

My 9th great-grandmother was Judith Quackley. I know nothing about Judith except that on 06 May 1629 she married John Stevens in Sandwich, St. Peter, Kent England. My best guess for her year of birth is 1613 or earlier. I may never find out any more about Judith but I'll keep searching.

Do you have a Quackley in your family tree?

P is for Palatines

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is P for Palatines

At the invitation of Queen Anne in the spring of 1709, about 7 000 harassed Palatines sailed down the Rhine to Rotterdam. From there, about 3000 were dispatched to America, either directly or via England, under the auspices of William Penn. The remaining 4 000 were sent via England to Ireland to strengthen the protestant interest.

In 1710, three large groups of Palatines sailed from London. The first went to Ireland, the second to Carolina and the third to New York with the new Governor, Robert Hunter. There were 3 000 Palatines on 10 ships that sailed for New York and approximately 470 died on the voyage or shortly after their arrival. 

I have several Palatine ancestors. My list of Palatine ancestors is at Palatine Family Names

O is for Orphans

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is O for Orphans. My husband's great-grandmother Elsie Phyllis Markham was orphaned at the age of 8 months. Her older brothers ages 8 and 2 years old were also orphaned when their parents succumbed to illness in London England in October and November 1898.

The boys were sent to orphanages but Elsie was taken in by relatives, eventually brought to Canada by her brother Albert Finch who had been sent to Canada as a Barnardo Boy in 1901.

Albert was admitted to Barnardos Homes as an orphan on 16 Feb. 1899 age 8 years, 4 months. He spent one night at the Receiving House in Stepney East London and on 17 Feb. 1899 he was transferred to Sheppard House in Bow, East London. On 10 May 1899 Albert was boarded out with foster parents in Romsey Hampshire where he remained for two years before returning to East London to Leopold House on 8 March 1901. On 21 March 1901 he was sent to Canada on the SS Tunisian

Luckily for those with orphans in the family tree, there are many good orphanage records available. We were able to obtain Albert's records from Barnardo's but his brother's records could not be found as he was sent to a different orphanage in England called the Miller Homes. We could not find records for this orphanage.

No child left the Miller Homes until employment had been found for them. The boys were apprenticed to a trade and some with the ability to teacher training. They were always provided with three suits and a sum of money. The girls left at 17 and went into domestic service, nursing or teacher training, they too were provided with an outfit of clothes and some money. George Miller gave his blessing to every child on leaving his care, and gave each a Bible.

As one orphan recalled upon leaving, "My belongings were my Bible, my clothes and half a crown and, best of all, was the priceless blessing of George Miller's prayers."

 

UPDATE: Many readers have asked what happened to Elsie and her little brother. I am writing their stories today and will publish them here on Olive Tree Genealogy blog in the coming weeks.

N is for New Netherland

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is N for New Netherland

Many of my readers know I have dozens of New Netherland ancestors. For those not familiar with the term, New York state was originally settled by the Dutch and named New Netherland. If you have New Netherland ancestors please take a look at my pages with ships lists 1624-1664 including an exclusive project I have been working on for many years - compiling lists of those who sailed to New Netherland that are not found on published lists.

You will also find a history of New Netherland, and several interesting databases where you might find an ancestor name.

Some of my many New Netherland ancestors can be found on my site:

* BRADT. BRATT Bradt Family Descendants of Albert Andriessen de Noorman aka Bradt
* DAMEN Damen Family Descendants of Jan Cornelise Damen from Bunik Netherlands
* LEROY. LARAWAY. AUDY.  Simeon LeRoy dit Audy French settler to New France (Quebec) then New York
* PIER Pier Family Jan Theunissen and Arent Theunissen Pier and their descendants
* POST The New Jersey Post Family Descendants of Adriaen Crijnen Post. Book Available
* RYCKMAN Ryckman Family Harmen Janse Ryckman of New Netherland
* VAN ALSTYNE The Van Alstyne Family - The descendants of Jan Martense de Wever aka Van Alstyne
* VAN SLYKE. VAN SLYCK The Van Slyke Family - The descendants of Cornelise Antonissen Van Slyke and his nephew Willem Pieterse Van Slyke. Two books on the family also available
* VAN VALKENBURG Van Valkenburg Family Lambert Van Valkenburg and his son Jochem Lambertse
* VROOMAN The Vrooman Family in New Netherland New York Book Available

M is for Murderer

 Warder and Dublin Weekly Mail
Saturday 09 July 1842

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is M for Murderer. I don't have any murderers or ancestors who were murdered, in my family tree. But my husband does.

In September 1813, my husband's 5th great grandparents William and Mary Massey were murdered in their beds in Temple Carrick, Wicklow Ireland.

The burial registers have this note with their entry of burial on September 9th:

"Murdered in their bed, 8 children thus left orphans." 

Their murderer was never found, but rumours persisted that their son Edward (my husband's 4th great-grandfather) had killed them.

In 1842 Edward sued a man who continued to spread the gossip and accuse Edward of being a murderer. The courts found in Edward's favour. The mystery was never solved and to this day no one knows who murdered William and Mary.

K is For Kent England Ancestors

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is K for Kent UK. My mother was first generation Canadian. Both her parents were born in Ramsgate, Kent UK. Her lines on both sides go back many generations in Kent.

Here are some (but certainly not all) of my Kent surnames:

Fuller, Caspall, Norris, Phylpot, Simpson, Stead, Elvery, Laming, Fryer, Hinds, Wildbore, Page, Sutton, Rayner, Friar/Fryer, Prigg, Peerless, Hubbard, Smithett, Badcock, Moses, Ellington, and more.

I started writing books about my Kent ancestors so that I could share them with my adult children. I've only just touched the tip of the Kent iceberg with these:


The Caspall Family of Kent England

 The Caspall family can be found in Kent England with John Caspall's birth circa 1710-1717. This book follows the descendants of John Caspall and his wife Mary Prigg for six generations.










The Wildbore Family of Kent England by Lorine McGinnis Schulze
 
This book follows 4 generations of descendants of George Wildbore and his wife Alicia Pamphlett (nee Sackett) who married in Minster, Thanet, Kent England in 1571.








The Hubbard Family of Kent England by Lorine McGinnis Schulze


 Isaac Hubbard married the widow Mary Ducy in St. James in Dover in 1698.This book follows Isaac and Mary's descendants down four generations through their son Isaac, their grandson Philip, their greaat-grandson Philip and their great-great-granddaughter Milly Elizabeth who married John Caspall. 





The Hinds Family of Kent England


The Hinds families were in Ramsgate Kent England for many generations. This book follows the descendants of Thomas Hinds and his wife Sarah Ammis who married in 1693 in Canterbury.








The Laming Family of Kent England
by Lorine McGinnis Schulze


The Laming family is found in Thanet and Minster Kent England for over 200 years. This book follows six generations of descendants of William Laming born circa 1610 and his wife Mary Culmer.







The Norris Family of Kent England
 
This book follows two distinct Norris families in Kent England. The first is the Norris family found in Lenham Kent in 1773 when Edward Norris and Catherine Earl were married in the Lenham parish church. Four generations of their descendants are followed. The second is the Norris family of Elmsted and Waltham Kent.
 

J is For Jailbird

1863 Indictment William Massey for Theft

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames.

Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter isJ for Jailbird.

Do you have any ancestors who ended up in prison? I do, but not as many as my husband.

My husband's 3rd great-grandfather William Massey lived in St Mary's Ontario from 1860 until his death in 1865. 

William, a teamster, worked for the newly formed American Express Company which had an office in St. Mary's in the mid 1800s. In 1862 William was charged with stealing over $800.00 from the Company (approximately $20,000.00 now) and arraigned for trial. One of the jurors at his arraignment was non other than Timothy Eaton, founder of Eaton's Company stores.

Read more about William and the lies he told his family to explain his absence while in jail. 

Olive May Peer, born November 1898 in Port Credit Ontario, has a common Peer ancestor with me. Her 3rd great-grandfather Jacob Peer, who I wrote about in the book "The Peer Family of North America" is my 4th. great-grandfather. My grandmother, also named Olive Peer, was Olive May's cousin.

In February 1927 Olive May married Robert Jackson. She could not have known that her husband was using an alias, that his real name was Robert Rodgers, and that her husband would be charged with two counts of bigamy and sentenced to time in jail.
 
Read more about Olive and her bigamist husband.

For something a little lighter, perhaps even humourous read Baa baa blacksheep, have you any cows? My great-grandmother's brothers spent time in jail for stealing a cow! Imagine going to jail in 1901 for a year and a half just for stealing a cow.

To find more exciting and troubling stories of ancestors who have been sent to prison for various crimes ranging from being drunk and disorderly to murder, use the topic "JAIL"  That topic will also bring up lists of prisoners in various jails, and more!

I is For Immigrant

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is I for Immigrant. Who was your first immigrant to arrive in N. America or your country of residence? My first to arrive in Canada, where I live, was Jacques Hertel.

Jacques was one of Samuel de Champlain (The Father of Canda)'s interpretors, brought to New France (Quebec) in 1613

Jacques' daughter Ots-Toch, a half French half Mohawk woman, married the Dutchman Cornelis Van Slyke in New Netherland.

My most recent immigrant ancestors were my maternal grandparents who came from England to Canada in 1913. That is 300 years of dozens of my ancestors coming to North America from their home countries!

Here's a few of my ancestors who arrived in that 300 year time span. I'm sure most of us have similar multiple immigrant arrivals.

1. Cornelis Van Slyke from Holland to New Netherland (New York) in 1634
2. Albert Andriessen de Noorman (Bradt family) from Norway to New Netherland (New York) in 1637
3. Leendert de Grauw from Holland  to New Netherland (New York) in 1637
4. Cornelis Van Schaik  to New Netherland (New York) in1640
5. Jan Snediker from Germany to New Netherland (New York) in 1641
6. Lambert Van Valkenburg from Holland  to New Netherland (New York) in 1643
7. Adriaen Crijnen Post from Brazil  to New Netherland (New York) in 1650
8. Christian Van Horn from ?  to New Netherland (New York) in 1653
9. Jan Van Alystyne from Holland to New Netherland (New York) in 1655
10. Willem Pieterse Van Slyke from Holland to New Netherland (New York) in 1655
11. Herman Coerts from Holland  to New Netherland (New York) in 1659
12. Simon de Ruine  to New Netherland (New York) in 1659
13. David Usille from Calais to New Netherland in 1660
14. Soert Olferts (Shuart family) from Holland to New Netherland (New York) in 1663
15. Georg Wilhelm Kehl from Germany to New York 1709
16. Johann Frederich Marical from Germany to New York 1710
17. Harmanus Hommel from Germany to New York 1710 
18. Nicholas Bieri from Germany to Holland then New York 1727
19. Hartmann Hunsaker from Switzerland to Pennsylvania in 1731
20. Ulrich Gingerich from Alsace to Pennsylvania in 1747
21. Jacob Burkholder from Switzerland to Pennsylvania in 1765 
22. Sophia de Roche from France to Pennsylvania in 1765
23. Thomas King from England to Canada 1831 
24. Betty Bell (nee Higginson) from England to Canada 1831
25. Joseph McGinnis & Fanny Downey from Ireland to Canada in 1846

 So there you have just a few of my many immigrant ancestors to North America in that 300 years between 1613 and 1913. Who were your immigrant ancestors? Who was your earliest?

Hi is For Huguenot

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is H for Huguenot. What is a Huguenot ancestor?

Philippe Casier from Calais to New Netherland 1660

The Huguenots had long been persecuted in their homelands. Many families, in terror, fled for other lands after the fall of La Rochelle and Montauban. The West Indies, inviting because of its climate and fruitfulness, was becoming the refuge of many Huguenots for whom the cold region of Canada had no attractions. Removals to these islands had been going on under the direction of a company formed at Paris in 1626, under M. D'Enantbus, who the year before had visited the island of St. Christopher in a brigantine from Dieppe. There he planted the first colony in 1627. 

In 1635, Martinique was occupied by a hundred old and experienced settlers from St. Christopher, including Phillippe Casier and his wife Maria Taine. But D'Enambue died. In 1640 Jesuit missionaries arrived at Martinique where there were almost a thousand French, "without mass, without priest,". Having been reluctantly admitted by the governor and the people, the Jesuits heightened the public dissensions which broke out in the islands and which grew so violent five years later, especially in Martinique, that many of the Huguenots were glad to get back to Europe. 

Many of them went to the Netherlands, some of them, as the Casier family of Calais, eventually finding safe haven at Harlem, New York. Philippe Casier and David Uziele sailed on the Gilded Otter in 1662. They were listed on the manifest as:

• Philip Cassier, farmer from Calais, wife and 4 children, 23, 16, 12 and 3 yrs
   
• David Usilie, farmer from Calais wife and nursing child

G is for German

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is G. I have several German ancestors, mainly Palatines who fled religious persecution in 1710 and were sent to New York. In 1710, three large groups of Palatines sailed from London. The first went to Ireland, the second to Carolina and the third to New York with the new Governor, Robert Hunter. There were 3 000 Palatines on 10 ships that sailed for New York and approximately 470 died on the voyage or shortly after their arrival.

PALATINE GERMAN PIONEER ANCESTORS

BELLINGER a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

DECKMANN aka DEGMAN a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

WARNER aka WERNER a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

HOMMEL a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

SCHNEIDER aka SNIDER a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

KEHL a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

MERCKEL aka MERKLEY aka MARICAL a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

MULLER a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

WUEST aka WUST a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

F is For French Ancestor

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is F. Do you have a French ancestor in your lineage? I do. In fact I have several.

Sophia De Roche was born in France 21 May 1748. Jacob Burkholder (a Mennonnite born in Switzerland) and Sophia (a French Huguenot)  fled religious persecution in Switzerland  to come to Pennsylvania in 1765 on the ship Myrtilla.

Jacob and Sophia Burkholder were the first settlers in Hamilton Ontario Canada on land called the Burkholder Settlement. A monument to them was erected in 1949. Jacob filed a petition for land where he states arrived July 1794, applied for land 7 August 1794.

A few of my other French ancestors were:

David Demarest
 David de Maire, [Demarest] from Picardy, and Wife and four children 18, 12, 6, 1 yr od were recorded on the ship Bonte Koe arriving in New Netherland (New York) in 1663

Philippe Casier
 Philippe Casier (my 10th great-grandfather) of Calais France, is first mentioned in the Huguenot settlement of Martinique in the French West Indies. In 1635 a party of old and experienced settlers had gone to Martinique from the neighbouring island of St. Christopher, which had been settled by French Huguenots in 1627. In 1645, Philippe Casier and others left the island and returned to Europe. Casier went first to Calais, then to Sluis, Flanders where his daughter Hester was born. Some time after 1652, Philippe and his family moved to Mannheim in the Lower Palatinate of Germany, along with other Huguenots and Walloon Protestants.

David Uziele
David Uzille was from Calais but his family came originally from near La Moussaye (south of St. Malo) in lower Brittany. He was a farmer, born about 1635. He married Marie Magdalina, the eldest daughter of Philippe Casier from Calais, before 1659. David Usilie, as he was recorded, emigrated from Calais on the ship the Gilded Otter in 1660

Simeon LeRoy dit Audy
Simeon LeRoy dit Audy was born in 1640 in Creance, Normandy, France.  About 1681 or 1682 Simeon and his wife took some of their family to Kingston,New York. Nine of their eleven children were recorded in Canada. Several of the sons began using the surname Larroway. My branch were Loyalists arriving in Upper Canada during the American Revolution

Jacques Hertel 
Jacques was the father of Ots-Toch, the Mohawk woman who married Cornelis Van Slyke in New Netherland (present day New York)

and more!

E is for Explorer - Do You Have One?

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag

Today's letter is E and the tag word is Explorer. I don't have any explorers like Columbus or Henry Stanley but I do have Eileen Vollick, Canada's first licenced female pilot. Perhaps I can call her an Explorer.

My third cousin twice removed, Eileen Vollick (1908-1968)  became the first Canadian woman to obtain a pilot's licence in March 1928. Eileen was related to me in two ways, and was also my 7th cousin twice removed. 

"Canada’s first licenced woman pilot was born in Wiarton, Ontario. By the age of 19, she was a textile analyst at the Hamilton Cotton Company and had also won a local beauty contest. She was a spirited girl who had parachuted into Burlington Bay before taking flying lessons. It was 1927. Charles Lindbergh had just flown the Atlantic and Amelia Earhart was beginning to capture the public’s imagination. The diminutive Beach Boulevard resident had already set her sights much higher than anyone could have imagined!

She enrolled in the Flying School owned by Jack V. Elliot at Ghents Crossing on Burlington Bay. The only reservation that her instructor, Len Trip had, was that she was only 5' 1"s and had to use pillows to see out of the cockpit of the ski-equipped Curtiss JN-4 Bi-plane (affectionately known as a "Jenny")

The Comptroller of Civil Aviation issued Eileen a private pilot’s licence #77 on March 13, 1928, the first woman in Canada to qualify as a pilot.

After passing her flight test, she flew in the U.S. and Canada, often demonstrating aerobatic flying which she enjoyed immensely. Shortly afterwards she became Mrs James Hopkin, moved to New York State and raised a family, where she lived until her death in 1968."

Read more about this pioneer woman.

D is for Dutch Ancestors

Image by ArtTower from Pixabay

Olive Tree Genealogy is continuing a new Alphabet Genealogy series of blog posts. I'm not following the usual way of going A-Z surnames. Instead I will create a one word "tag". Then I will share an ancestor (mine, my husband's, an inlaw's or one of my children's) who fits the tag.

Today's letter is D and the tag word is Dutch. I have so many Dutch ancestors who left Holland for New Netherland (New York) that I've lost count! Here are the names of twelve with their years of immigration.

1. Cornelis Van Slyke from Holland to New Netherland (New York) in 1634
2. Albert Andriessen de Noorman (Bradt family) from Norway to New Netherland (New York) in 1637
3. Leendert de Grauw from Holland  to New Netherland (New York) in 1637
4. Cornelis Van Schaik to New Netherland (New York) in 1640
5. Jan Snediker from Germany to New Netherland (New York) in 1641
6. Lambert Van Valkenburg from Holland  to New Netherland (New York) in 1643
7. Adriaen Crijnen Post from Brazil  to New Netherland (New York) in 1650
8. Christian Van Horn from ?  to New Netherland (New York) in 1653
9. Jan Van Alystyne from Holland to New Netherland (New York) in 1655
10. Willem Pieterse Van Slyke from Holland to New Netherland (New York) in 1655
11. Herman Coerts from Holland  to New Netherland (New York) in 1659
12. Soert Olferts (Shuart family) from Holland to New Netherland (New York) in 1663

So there you have just a few of my many Dutch ancestors to North America. Do you have any Dutch family?