1 st Dutch generation A.1. Aert Willemsze/Willems Dutch immigrating progenitor of the Orser family. Married to Weijntje Elbertse on unknown date, unknown place. Aert Willemsze and Weijntje Elbertse seemed to follow strictly the Dutch namegiving tradition. Their 1st son Willem (1640) was named after his paternal grandfather (Aert's father), their 2nd child was a girl, Anna (1642), named after her maternal grandmother Anna Herbertsdr. Next, there were (the twins??) 1643) Elbert, named after his maternal grandfather Elbert Lambertsze and Weijntje (she could have been named after her mother, which was not unusual but maybe Aert's mother was also called Weijntje (or also Anna and that name was already in use)). The last child was named Evert (1645). Therefore, there is a chance that Evert was named after his paternal greatgrandfather, according to the Dutch naming practices. Therefore, Aert Willemsze could have been a son of a certain Willem Evertsze. If a baptism record should be found in the region Barneveld-Nijkerk-Amersfoort between 1590-1620 in which a Willem Evertsze brings his child Aert to the baptismal font, then there is a chance to hit the mark. Alas, to date, no such baptism record has been found (yet). At this moment, the best candidate for progenitor of the Orser family, seems to me Aert Willems, born in Amersfoort in 1608, September 11. His father was Willem Aertsen. But this is nothing more than a trail I follow. Further investigation is absolutely needed. The patronymic that alternates every generation poses also serious problems. At the moment when I write these lines, two Orser-men, Paul & Lorne who descend both in the direct paternal line from Aert Willems and Weijntje Elberts, have ordered Y-DNA tests. The most ideal scenario we can hope for, is that the results of those tests will show a match with a Dutch family within a period of 500 years bp. B.1. Weijntje [Weimpgen, Wijntje, Wyntje, Weijntien] Elberts/Elbertse/Elbertsze Bapt. Amersfoort (NL), August 7, 1603 ( den 7 augustus heeft Elbert schoenmaeker zijn twee kinderen ten doop gebracht het een genaemt Aeltgen het ander genaemt Weimpgen. Transl.: on August 7 th, Elbert, shoemaker, has brought his two children with him to be baptized, the one named Aeltgen the other named Weimpgen.), twin with Aeltje, daughter of Elbert Lambertse, shoemaker and Annegen Herbertsdr 1
About Weijntje s early years in Holland, almost nothing is known. Her parents were members of the Nederduitsche Gereformeerde Kerk (Dutch Reformed Church: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/dutch_reformed_church ) When Weijntje was born, she had, besides her twin-sister Aeltje, a sister Mechteltje almost 5 years older. Her older brother Lambert (b. 1601) was probably already dead by then. We will treat the data about her parents in a next document (2 nd generation). Her twin-sister Aeltje (Aeltgen) died also at a very young age. The burial records (or what is left of it) of that period leave a lot to be desired. But when in 1607 other twins in the family are born, they are named Lambert and Aeltje, meaning that Weijntje s twin sister must have been deceased before 1607. Lambert (in honor of the paternal grandfather) was a name they recycled from the aforementioned Weijntje s elder brother Lambert (born 1601 and died very young). In 1616, when a new son is born, he is named once again Lambert, meaning that also the Lambert born in 1607 was deceased. So, there was a tradition in this family to give children the name of a previously deceased sibling. Apparently, Weijntje survived all dangerous child diseases because her name doesn t return in the naming of later children (Claesien in 1609 ). Nevertheless, after 1603, Weijntje is mentioned anymore in any deed nor marriage record in the 17th century archives of Amersfoort She seems to be vanished from the planet! But then, in 1640, on May 20, on the other side of the ocean in New Amsterdam, a certain Wyntje Elberts, together with her husband Aert Willemsze, suddenly turns up, witnessing the baptism of the infant Gerrit Gerrits in the Reformed Dutch Church (http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~rbillard/na_baptisms_1639-1730.htm). A few months later, on August 12, 1640, Weijntje Elbertse s own first son Willem is brought to the priest to be baptized. 2
Other children of this couple: - Annetje, baptized 1642, March 30 - Weyntje, baptized 1643, March 8 - Elbert, baptized 1643 (!!), June 21(3 months later than his sister Weyntje!) This is a genealogical anomaly that we won t try to solve within the scope of this study that focusses on the Dutch ancestry) - Evert, baptized 1645, February 5 Aert Willemsze and Weijntje Elbertse were the Dutch immigrating progenitors of the American / Canadian Orser family. Much has been written about their life in the New World, as good as nothing about their earlier life in Holland. Only Mr. Robert B. Miller mentioned in 1895 in his famous article Aert Willemszen and his descendants the following information: 1. Aert Willemszen,' an early settler at New Amsterdam, probably came from Barnevelt, in Gelderland. He and his wife were members of the Dutch Church at New Amsterdam, when the first roll of members was made in 1649. He was a burgher, April 18, 1657. On July 10, 1662, his widow married Cornelius Aertszen, widower (of Beltje Hendricks), and who had a market garden or farm just above the city line. Weyntje Elberts, his wife, probably came from Nieukercken, in Zealand, with her brother, Elbert Elbertszen. Our key question is now: was Weijmpgen Elberts born in Amersfoort 1603 the one and same person as Wyntje Elberts, married to Aert Willemsze who gave birth to their 1 st child in 1640 in America? I have several reasons to believe that, indeed, she was! 1. It is not clear to me where Miller obtained some data about their Dutch origins and he doesn t mention his sources either. Maybe some data were part of an oral family saga. So, in general, they were probably true but I guess he might have been wrong in supposing that Weyntje Elberts, his wife, probably came from Nieukercken, in Zealand, with her brother, Elbert Elbertszen. Nieukercken is the 17th century spelling of Nijkerk which is a neighbouring village of Barneveld in the province of Gelderland. In the province of Zealand there is no Nieukercken nor Nieuwkerken but Nieuwerkerk, situated almost 95 miles from Barneveld. When a Dutchman pronounces the names of both villages, he will very seldom confuse Nieukercken with Nieuwerkerk. It also makes more sense when Aert Willemszen would have met his fiancé Weijntje Elberts in a neighbouring village instead of 95 miles further away. 3
We also looked at the spread of the surname Elberts in Holland about 1600 AD http://nl.geneanet.org/familienamen/elberts The outcome by province: Zeeland only 1 Gelderland 78, North-Holland 43, Utrecht 27, South-Holland 9, North-Brabant 8, Overijsel 2, Groningen 1, Friesland and Limburg and Drenthe 0. 4
I also experimented with variations on the name like Elbertse/Elbertsen/Elbertsz/Elbertszen and so on, but there are less results and the same pattern returns. It is clear that Nijkerk, Barneveld and Amersfoort are situated in the part of Holland where you expect the highest concentration of Elbertse. Then I looked in every province during the period 1600-1640 AD for a Wijntje Elberts and at first sight I didn t find any person. So, I tried all derivatives of the first name Wijntje (the spelling in the Netherlands was not officially established yet in the 17th century) and suddenly: bingo! Only one Wijntje was baptized with that name in Holland during the mentioned period with a father Elbert, i.e. on August 7, 1603 in Amersfoort. Conclusion: it is perfectly sensible to assume that Weijntje came from Amersfoort instead of Nieuwerkerk (not Nieukercken ) in Zealand. 2. If Weijntje was born in 1603, then she gave birth to her son Willem in 1640 at the age of 37. Her age could explain why Weijntje stopped bringing forth children after barely 5 years (in 1645: birth of Evert). 3. Weijntje and Aert seemed to follow strictly the Dutch namegiving tradition. Their first child Willem was named after his paternal grandfather (Aert s father). The 2 nd child, a girl, Annatje, should have been named after the maternal grandmother. This corresponds perfectly to the theory that mother Weijntje must have been one and the same person as Weijntje Elbertse, born in 1603 as the daughter of Elbert Lambertsze and Anna Herbertsdr. --------------- Of great help would be the finding of the marriage registration of Aert Willlemsze and Weijntje Elbertse. However, that seems to be a hopeless task. Did they marry aboard the 5
vessel that crossed the ocean? Is that the reason why any registration at all about their marriage can be found? For the last time, let us have a look again at their two first born children: 1640, August 12: Willem, named after his paternal grandfather Willem (cf. his father s patronymic) 1642, March 30, Annetje, named after her maternal grandmother Annetje Herbertsdr. If this had been (for both) their 2nd or 3 rd marriage, then, wouldn t they have named their former children Willem and Annatje, yet? So, is it possible that - despite their age in 1640 (Weijntje 37, Aert 32??) - this could have been their very first marriage after all? -------------------------- Also, let us have, for the last time, look at what Miller wrote: Weyntje Elberts, his wife, probably came from Nieukercken, in Zealand, with her brother, Elbert Elbertszen. I just wonder if this brother Elbert Elbertszen is not mistaken by Miller for Elbert Elbertszen Stoothof, married 1) Aeltje Cornelis Cool 2) Sara Roelofs (Schenck). For instance, at the baptism of Elbert in 1643, a certain Elbert Elbertszen appears as a witness but also Sara Roelofs As we will see in our next document about the 2 nd generation Dutch ancestors: Weijntje s father was named Elbert (Lambertsze) but there is no trace of a brother Elbert in that family. Ben Van Beurden, February 21, 2015 6