Maybe you thought that the furthest back I could find photos were for Richard DeKorn and his wife Alice Paak DeKorn, my great-great-grandparents. Nope. I have a photo of Richard’s father, Boudewijn de Korne. He was born on June 11, 1816 in Kapelle, Zeeland, the Netherlands.
Boudewijn de Korne
He was a laborer in Kapelle, Zeeland, the Netherlands, as of May 31, 1847. On 21 Aug 1851 he was a “arbeider,” or laborer, still in Kapelle.
In 1856, Boudewijn emigrated with his wife, Joanna Reminse, and two children; his reason was “amelioration of existence.” At that point he was still a laborer.
Johanna was born July 15, 1817 in Kapelle. On May 21, 1847, she was a laborer in Kapelle. On August 21, 1851, she was known as Janna Remijnse.
Johanna died in 1864, at the age of 47, in Kalamazoo. Boudewijn (Boudewin) died in 1873 at the age of 57 in Kalamazoo.
These are their three children born in the Netherlands (note that research shows he emigrated with 2 children, but then see that Geertruit died in infancy):
Richard: Dirk de Korne, born 21 Aug 1851, Kapelle, Zeeland, the Netherlands; died 26 Jan 1930, Kalamazoo,
Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States.Geertruit de Korne was born on 28 Aug 1848 in Kapelle, Zeeland, the Netherlands. She died on 6
May 1849 at the age of 0 in Kapelle, Zeeland, the Netherlands.Mary: Maria Catharina de Korne was born on 4 Jan 1855 in Kapelle, Zeeland, the Netherlands.
At least one more child was born in the United States. In the 1860 U.S. census, the DeKornes had a one-year-old daughter Adriana. Also, according to family accounts there was a daughter Jennie. Was Jennie the same person as Adriana or were there at least two children born after the family emigrated to Michigan?
“Amelioration of existence”… what a poetic term. Good luck with your hunt re: the possibility of other children. Cheers, Catherine.
Catherine, it is, isn’t it? Thank you so much. I can’t wait to find more!
It seems that life was hard for your g-g-g-grandparents. And it looks as if Boudewijn had lost some teeth by the time this photo was taken. It must have been difficult for people with dental problems in those days…chronic infections and pain, inability to chew certain foods, etc.
It’s very interesting that you bring this up about B’s teeth and their hard lives. In a photo of Richard DeKorn, his son, I can see that his teeth are gone. He looked more like his father in that photo, and that was the reason. While Boudewijn and Johanna were laborers, Richard became a very accomplished brick mason and building contractor and his son, Joseph graduated from the University of Michigan in engineering and became head of the water and light department in Grand Rapids. That is an American dream story, I think. Also, I think it’s remarkable that Boudewijn’s portrait was taken.
Well, it seems that Adriana is Jennie because in the 1870 census there is a 10 year old Jennie but no Adriana.
1870 United States Federal Census
Name: Richard Do Core
Age in 1870: 18
Birth Year: abt 1852
Birthplace: Holland
Home in 1870: Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo, Michigan
Race: White
Gender: Male
Post Office: Kalamazoo
Household Members: Name Age
Wm Do Core 53
Richard Do Core 18
Mary Do Core 15
Jennie Do Core 10
==================
I followed my own HOW TO and found Richard in 1870, by the name of DO Core
Take Care.
Jose
There are 266 pages in the 1870 census record for Kalamazoo and I found Brick Mason – Richard on page 120 with a father named Wm.
Do you know what was happening in Kalamazoo in 1870, because almost every page had a vacant house. I check pages 1-120 and 200-266 and vacant houses on every page. Was this during the crash in the economy? This would be a good mystery to follow.
Take Care.
Jose
Jose, I know I thanked you for this stuff on ancestry.com, but I want to thank you again. This stuff is fantastic. Now you have me wondering about why there were so many vacant houses. And since it seems Boudewijn moved to Kalamazoo from Zeeland, Michigan, between 1860 and 1870, that maybe there was a reason–housing? Makes me wonder about that. And if the economy was so bad how come my “laborer” ancestors came to the U.S. and started to do pretty well for themselves?
1870 Kalamazoo Playing Cards 1870.
http://kvm.kvcc.edu/info/museON/museographies/MuseXXII_election08.pdf
Just in case you have access to Ancestry here is my (DeKorn) tree link:
http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/51240115/person/13410229061
I found DeKorn in cemetery.
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gsr&GSiman=1&GScid=1963665&GSfn=&GSln=Dekorn
Take Care
Jose
I forgot that it was you on Ancestry. I was going to tell you about this cool blog… LOL Anyway 24 Sep 1869 Wall Street has it’s first “Black Friday” ruining small speculators. Jay Gould, James Fisk and even Pres. Grant’s bro-in-law try to corner the gold market and in the process destroy half the banks… per book “The People’s Chronology” James Trager1992
That little bit of info might give you a start in your research for 1870 Michigan housing question.
I love reading your posts and seeing all the photos of your ancestors. As I become more familiar with them I’m sure to start finding resemblances down the line.
Is Geertruit Dutch for Gertrude?
EmilyAnn, I think it is Dutch for Gertrude. I’m finding out that Dutch first names are good for searching because they repeat the same names over and over again
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Good luck with this mystery! Are you also in the BU class? If so, make sure your sources, information and evidence are properly categorized!! Dave R
Thanks, Dave. What’s the BU class?
BU refers to the on-line “Genealogical Research” course I’m taking through Boston University. Quite a few of the other people who are in the course have visited my Old Bones blog, but their “Blog Name” is different from their “Student” name….I thought that you might have been another of my “classmates”!!
Oh how fun! That sounds like a great course. Nope, I just happened upon your blog and loved it. The name is great, too.
Great fun, but very intense and time bound. The whole thing is about 3 months long. Most modules run 1 week; participation in Discussion Groups is “suggested”; assignments are due each week . When the module is over it’s really over, it simply disappears from the web site. So you have to get while the gettin’s good!
I would love that class, but not being able to get it off the site afterward, at least for a few weeks, would be frustrating. Too bad they can’t change that.