The family of Jean/Jan/John Demarest 1645-1719

 One thing that makes researching this family (all of the Demarests, from David on down), is that there are many spellings of both first names and surnames, and sometimes it seems that there are nicknames or middle names used as first names, just to make it fun for family researchers.  I am using the surname Demarest, but the further back in time you go, the more variations you will find.  And I'm using Jean, because that seems to be the most common and because it reminds us that he was, after all, from a French family.

Jean is the first son of David and Marie Sohier Demarest, born in 1645 in Zeeland, the Netherlands.  He immigrated with his family to what was then New Amsterdam, and married Jacomina de Ruine, the daughter of Simon and Magdelena van der Straaten de Ruine, in about 1668.  All of these families are French Huguenots, living in France, the Netherlands, and Germany as religious persecution dictated.  They were fortunate to find a more congenial religious climate in America, and were at first part of the Dutch Reformed church.  Jean and Jacomina moved on with members of their extended family, to settle near Hackensack, New Jersey, where they lived the rest of their lives, and where they raised a large family.  Jacomina died in 1692 and Jean in 1719. Both are buried at the French Burying Ground at New Milford, Bergen County, New Jersey.  (Jean married twice after Jacomina's death, to Marritje Van Winkle and then to Magdalena Laurens.  No children were born from those marriages.)

David was their first born son, in 1669.  He died in 1706 at Hackensack, New Jersey.  He married Antie/Annetje Slot, the daughter of Peter and Marritje Van Winkle Slot.  (So Jean's second wife was his son's mother in law.)  Their children are Lea, Maritje, Jacomina, a second Lea, David, and Rachel.  

John (this spelling seems to be used more than Jean or Jan, but watch out!) was born in 1671 and died in 1731 in Chester County, Pennsylvania.  He married Deborah Heyer or Heyet or possibly Hyatt or even Hoyt, possibly the daughter of Peter of whatever spelling you choose.  Their children are Jan, David, and Jemima (or possibly Jacomina).  John's second wife is Golah Pattison, whom I have not been able to further identify.  Their children are Golin, Solomon, and Elly.  

A daughter, Marie, was born in 1673 and died in 1730.  She married Jacobus Slot, the son of Peter and Marritje Van Winkle Slot (yes, the same family already mentioned twice in this post.) Their children are Peter, Johannes, Eva, Maria, Lea, Jona, David, Sara, Trintje, and Benjamin.  Marie (Maria, Mary, etc) died in 1730 at Hackensack, New Jersey. 

Sarah was born next, in 1675, and died in 1741 in Odessa, New Castle, Delaware.  She married Abraham Canon or Cannon, the son of Andrew and Jane Pearse Cannon.  Their children are Isaac, Andrew, Sarah, Jenny, Hester, John, David, and Abraham.  

Simon was born next, in 1677, and, sadly, died that same year.  

It seems that about every two years, there was a new child to welcome to the Demarest household.  In 1679, it was Rachel.  She married Thomas Heyer, the son of John Heyer (there seems to be little doubt about this identification, which makes me wonder whether John's wife was also part of this Heyer family, but apparently no documentation has yet been found to prove that.) Their children are Rachel, Jan, David, and Thomas.  Rachel may have died as early as 1709, which would explain why there are "only" four children.

Jacomina was born in 1680 and died sometime between 1727 and 1760 (still trying to find a documented date) in New Castle County, Delaware.  She married John Stewart, the son of John and Isabel Gardiner Stewart.  I believe this is the first Demarest to marry outside of the Huguenot community, so I can't help but wonder what Jean thought about this! Their children are Johannes, Elizabeth, James, David and Isaac.  She later married Richard Wilkinson, whom I'd can't identify further at this point.  It is not believed that she had children with him.  

Leah was born in 1682 and died after 1744 in Hackensack, New Jersey.  Her first husband, the father of her children, is Abraham Brouwer, the son of Peter and Petronilla Clyn (again, various spellings) Brouwer.  Their children are Petrus, Johannes, Samuel, David, Jacobus, Lea, Rachel, Daniel, and Maria.  Her second marriage is to Roelof Westervelt, the son of Libbert and Geesje Westervelt.  (I am not absolutely sure that I have correctly interpreted the names of Roelof's parents.  I'm not going to attempt Geesje's maiden name.) 

Peter was born in 1683 and died in 1763 in Schaalenburgh, New Jersey.  He first married Marritje Meet, the daughter of Peter and Gerritje Mandeville Meet.  Their children are Jacomina, Maria, Petrus, Rachel, Trintje, and Sara.  He next married Maria Batton, the daughter of Jacques and Margretje Sans Batton.  Their children are Margetje, Elizabeth, Hester, Lydia, John, Jacobus, David, Maria, Annatie, Samuel, and Magdalena.  I will follow this family in my next post.

Magdalena was born in 1684 and died in 1763 at Hackensack, New Jersey.  She married James Christie, the son of John and Anna Ramsay Christie.  Their children are Jacomina, Jacob, Annetje, Lea, Johannes, Marie, Elizabeth, James, David, William, Rachel, Daniel, Sara, and Magdalena.  

Their last child was Samuel, born in 1687.  He is thought to have died young, because he is not mentioned in his father's 1714 will, but no definite information has been located about him.  

So nine of Jean and Jacomina's 11 children lived to adulthood.  If my list of the grandchildren is correct and complete. they had 79 grandchildren, although they did not live long enough to meet all of them.  This family appears to have been both prosperous and respected, and their descendants can be proud of them. 

A side note:  This blog post marks my 1100th post in an attempt to trace the ancestors of my children.  It's been a wonderful ride, and with recent discoveries I've made, I'm not close to being done yet! 

 

  

 

 

 

Beeks line: The family of David Demarest 1620-1695

 I've written about David Demarest before.  He was born in Beauchamp, Chambray, France in 1620, and lived in Middleburg in The Netherlands and Mannheim in Germany before immigrating to the colony of New York, and finally to Hackensack, Bergen County, New Jersey.  These moves were necessitated due to the family being of French Huguenot beliefs, and such families suffered persecution for many years.  The moves once the family came to America were also due to economic and societal reasons.  It was a very eventful life that David and his family lived.

I am using the spelling Demarest here, because that is the most common and modern spelling.  It can be seen in any number of configurations, including De Maree and De Marets, but let's not get too confusing.  David is most likely the son of Jean Demarest and possibly Marguerite de Herville.  (I am not convinced that this was his mother, since none of his children or grandchildren are named Marguerite, but many trees are showing her as the mother.)  He married Marie Sohier, the daughter of Francois and Marie Ernhoult Sohier, in Middleburg in 1643.  Their children were born in Middleburg, Mannheim, and finally New Amsterdam.  They had the sadness of losing several children too young, as infants and young children, yet they persevered in their life and their faith.

The first child was Jean, born in 1645 and died in 1719 in Hackensack, New Jersey, where by that time there was a thriving Huguenot community.  He married three times, but all children are with his first wife, Jacomina de Ruine, the daughter of Simon and Magdalena Van Der Straten.  Their children are David, Jan, Mary, Sarah, Simon, Rachel, Jacomina, Lea, Peter, Magdalena, and Samuel.  His second marriage is to Marritje Van Winkle, the daughter of Jacob Van Winkle and Tryntje Jacobs, and the mother of his daughter in law.  His third marriage is to Magdalena Lauren, whom I have not further identified.  I will follow this family in my next post.

The first daughter may have been Marie, who does not seem to be documented.  She was born in 1646 and probably died as in infant, but certainly before 1659.

An infant son, David, was born in 1649 and died before December of 1651. 

David was the next son, born in 1651 and died in 1691 in Kinderkamack, Bergen County, New Jersey.  He married Rachel Cresson, the daughter of Pierre and Rachel Clauss Cresson.  Their children are David, Peter, Susanna, Ragel, Jacobus, Samuel, Daniel, Lidia, and Benjamin.  

Samuel was the next son, born in 1656 and died in 1728 in Hackensack, New Jersey.  He married Maria de Ruine, the daughter of Simon and Magdalena Van Der Straten de Ruine, another case of brothers marrying sisters.  Their children are Magdalena, Jacomina, Judith Samuel, Pieter, Sara, Simon, Rachel, Susanna, and Daniel.  I will also write about this family in an upcoming post, as the Beeks family has lines through both Jean and Samuel.  

A second daughter named Marie was born in 1659 and died before May of 1662.

A third daughter Marie was born in 1662 and died before August 26, 1689.  She is not known to have married.

And finally, Daniel, the New Amsterdam baby, was born in 1666 and was killed when he was run over by a horse in January of 1672.  

As we can see, this family had many losses, perhaps more than average but certainly not unheard of.  Those who survived left large families and good memories, and even, thankfully, a reasonable amount of records.  Let's not forget this French family! 

 

 

The family of Stephen Noble 1727-1791

Stephen Noble is the son of Thomas and Sarah Root Noble, born in 1727 and died in 1791, in Westfield, Massachusetts.  He lived his entire life there, except for the time he was in military service during the Revolutionary War, and possibly the French and Indian War (I've found no documentation at this point for the French and Indian War, but almost every able bodied male from Westfield was on at least one of the campaigns, so the strong possibility exists.). He married Ruth Church, the daughter of Jonathan and Ruth Hitchcock Church.  Stephen and Ruth had at least eight children, and all of them left Westfield.  

Their first child was Lovisa or Louisa (found under both spellings).  She was born in 1751 and died in 1823 in Hadley, Hampshire, County, Massachusetts, which was roughly 25 miles from Westfield.  She married Perez Smith, the son of John and Mehitable Cook Smith.  I located just two children for them, Anna and Louisa, but there may have been more.  If these were the only two children, perhaps there is a story that I've not yet found which would explain the small family.  Perez died in 1824.

Ruth was born next in 1756, She married Martin Root, the son of Martin and Eunice Lamb Root, and died in 1790 in Monthgomery, Massachusetts, which is roughly 12 miles from Westfield.  Their children are Noble, Martin, Ruth, Charlotte, Charles, and Eunice.  I've written earlier about this family.

Bildad was born in 1759 and died in 1799 in Warren, Herkimer County, New York.  He married Esther Greenfield, the daughter of Israel and Mary Brewer Greenfield.  Their children are Ebenezer, Lystra, Amanda, Henry, Minor, and a daughter who apparently died young.  Bildad is a Revolutionary War veteran, and perhaps some of his children would have fought in the war of 1812, given their location in New York.

Aaron was born in 1761 and died in 1824 in Lansingburgh, (now part of Troy) New York.  He is also a Revolutionary War veteran, having served with his father.  He married Catherine, known as Cate, Green, the daughter of John and Catherine Carr Greene.  Their children are Ruth, Stephen, Charlotte, another Stephen, another Charlotte, Harriet, and Aaron.  

There may or may not be an Irene, born in 1763.  I haven't located any information at all about her, and there appears to be another Irene born in 1763 in a different town.  If someone can help clear this up for me, I'd appreciate it!

Stephen was born in 1765 and died in August of 1823 in Mariposa, Ontario, Canada, where he had apparently gone sometime between 1810 and 1814.  I have no idea why he left his country, particularly with the war of 1812 either imminent or in full swing.  If someone has the answer to this mystery, I'd sure like to know it!  He married Esther Smith, the daughter of Thomas and Esther Ball Smith.  Their children are Stephen, Austin, Ambrose, Cynthia, Thomas, Eunice, Esther, Christiana, Achsah, and Susannah.  

Lois was born in 1767 and died in 1847 in Westhampton. about 14 miles from Westfield.  She married Israel Bridgman, the son of Noah and Mercy Clark Bridgman, as his second wife.  She was 35 at the time of their marriage, and had no children.  She was, however, stepmother to Israel's five children by his first wife.  

Eunice was born in 1770 and died in 1807 in Amherst, Massachusetts, about 28 miles from Westfield.  She married William Boltwood, the son of William and Mary Sheldon Boltwood.  Their children are Sarah, Lucius, Mary, Emily, Harriet, William, and Eunice.   

And finally, Lucinda was born in 1774, and died in 1857 in Hadley, Massachusetts.  She married Elisha Hubbard, the son of Edward and Margaret Gaylord Hubbard.  Their children are Maria, Harriet, Lucinda, Margaret, Elizabeth, Eunice, and Susan.  

All of the children left Westfield, but most of them stayed within a 30 or so radius of "home".  This was likely because of better economic prospects elsewhere.  If I had time, I'd love to explore these children more, but it is time to move on to another family.  I've enjoyed learning the essential details, and hints of the lives these Noble children lived, for each generation I've followed.  They are part of America.   

 

 

Breaking news, the brick wall breaking kind!

 I've been working on family genealogy for 19 years now, and I surely thought that I'd found about everyone that I was ever going to find.  Thanks to some kind folks I met through Ancestry, and new records on line, I now know who my 4th great grandmother is.  And in the process, I am somewhat satisfied with 11 new surnames to research.  I already know that some of them have fascinating stories, so I'm excited.  

"My" find is Lydia Goodenow, who married Jude Foster.  I have not yet identified her death date and location (she's not the one buried in Boston in 1801, because her name was no longer Foster at that point.)  Preliminary research shows that I'm missing some female names, so I have more grandmothers to try to find.  But here is a list of the surnames that appear to be correct, all except Rice new to our tree:

Goodenow, Bent, Drury, Rice, Moore, Weare, Lamson, Good, Graves, Axtell, Cutler.   Oh, and also Corbet/Corbett, who was the second husband of Lydia.  

If you recognize one of your families in this list (late 1500s to early 1700s). I'd love to hear from you.  It takes a village to build a tree.  Meantime, it's happy genealogy dance time!