Varik and Church Records of the 17th Century

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Varik is a small village along the Waal, one of the many branches of the Rhine as it flows through the Netherlands. I took these pictures while standing on the dike looking at the water on one side and down at the houses on the other side. No wonder that flooding has always been a major concern.

 

Farming the rich soil has been the main stay in this low land. Especially fruit such as cherries, apples and pears grow very well here. However, the villagers have also been known to be much more tolerant of differences in religion. Further north from here most people belong to the Dutch Reformed (or Protestant) Church, whereas to the south most are Catholic.  Varik is unique in that it has both churches in one small village.

Above is the Dutch Reformed Church. It was never finished as planned. Hence the stubby steeple. This typically happened when the parish ran out of money for the construction. Notice the tall steeple of the Catholic Church a couple blocks away.

  

When we talk about the Netherlands or Holland, we have to include windmills and wooden shoes. I wished I had a picture of the old farmer who was paddling his bicycle along the top of the dike where I was standing. He was about seventy years old, wore coveralls, a small cap, a big grin on his face, and wooden shoes. He stopped and we chatted about my mission; how I was trying to find out more about my ancestors who had lived here years ago. That's when he directed me to Piet Bregt, the retired smithy, who was one of the deacons in the church. When I knocked on the back door of their house and explained what I was after, his wife invited me in for a "kopje koffie" ( a cup of coffee), fed me some pastries and both were more than happy to see what they could find out from the old church records. That they did, indeed. But Johannes Brentjes remained a mystery.



 

The windmill to the left is in Varik. It was built to the north of the river in an open field where the blades could catch the westerly winds. Notice that the brick building was quite high so the blades were longer than those of the white mill to the right. This was more costly but a lot more efficient. The white windmill in Zuilichem - another village where many of our ancestors lived - is built right up against the dike. This was a favorite spot. It provided extra height and a flat river bed with "clean" wind. These mills had a solid foundation and only the round top could be rotated during wind shifts. They were generally used to grind wheat.
For an other type of windmill that belonged in our family at one point click here.



Old church records are often sketchy and not very complete. At other times they can contain great detail. Below is an example about one relative who was born in a small village in the Netherlands. The dates are around 1690. I show the original text and my translation for a couple reasons.

* The original text was hand written, probably with a goose quill, and perhaps that explains why the name was spelled differently several times. Herman and Hermen were the same person. His middle name was Jans, Jansen or Jansz. All three versions mean son-of-Jan.     
* The measurements of weight and volume are completely foreign to me.
* When a person became a widow or widower it was quite common to remarry. This was done more often to share a home and help each other with the daily chores of harsh life in those days, rather than true love.
To see examples of original documents click here.

(Translated by Jacob Brentjes 1/2007 from church records)

Herman Jans Guilicker, born in Ophemert, died after 1690.

"In 1681, Herman Jansen dug a number of ditches and channels on the Langert. He was paid for this by the poorhouse of Ophemert. In 1682 Herman Jansen received from the poorhouse of Ophemert fodder for his sheep and some other items with a value of 3 gilders."

"In 1683 Herman Guijlicker received a “schepel” corn from the poorhouse of Ophemert." (I don’t know how much a schepel is).

Member of the Reformed Church of Ophemert in 1687.

"In April Herman Jansz earned 2 gilders and 3 nickels for work he had done for the poorhouse of Ophemert. In August he delivered manure that was delivered to the poorhouse by Aert Klaesen."

"In June 1690 Hermen Jansz threshed seed for a day for the poorhouse; he also took care of the pigeons for 12 days. In October he delivered manure and also did some work for the poorhouse. He earned 4 gilders and 6 nickels for this."

"In June 1690 Hermen Jansz worked 2 days at the poorhouse. During that same year he also was catching caterpillars. Later yet during that year he was paid again by the poorhouse because he had worked the gardens and turned over the manure."

He was married in Ophemert on 17 November 1666, was engaged there on 10 October 1666 at the church with Willemke Jacobs, born in Heesselt, died prior to 1681. He was remarried in Ophemert on 28 April 1681, engaged there on 26 March 1681 at the church with Maijcken Evertsen. (She was the widow of Hendrik Janse, who passed away prior to 1681).

 - Herman Jans Guilicker, geboren te Ophemert, overleden na 1690.

  Herman Jansen groef in 1681 op de Langert een aantal sloten en voren op. Hij kreeg hiervoor door de armen van Ophemert betaald.    In 1682 kreeg Herman Jansen van de armen van Ophemert voer voor zijn schapen in nog enige waren ter waarde van 3 gulden.     In 1683 kreeg Herman Guijlicker een schepel gerst van de armen van Ophemert.    Lidmaat van de Hervormde kerk van Ophemert in 1687.

  In april verdient Herman Jansz 2 gulden en 3 stuivers voor werk dat hij gedaan had voor de armen van Ophemert. In augustus levert hij mest die in de armenhof bij wijlen Aert Klaesen gebracht is.     In juni 1690 heeft Hermen Jansz een dag zaad gedorst op de armenhof ook heeft hij daar 12 dagen de duiven gekeerd. In oktober heeft Herman Jansz mest geleverd en ook voor de armen van Ophemert arbeid geleverd. Hij beurde hier 4 gulden en 6 stuivers voor.

  In 1690 werkte Hermen Jansz 2 dagen in de armenhof. In datzelfde jaar ging hij daar ook rupsen vangen. Weer later in dat jaar kreeg hij weer van de armen betaald, omdat hij voor hen getuind en de mest geslecht had.

   Hij is getrouwd te Ophemert op 17 november 1666, ondertrouwd aldaar op 10 oktober 1666 voor de kerk (1) met Willemke Jacobs, geboren te Heesselt, overleden voor 1681. Hij is getrouwd te Ophemert op 28 april 1681, ondertrouwd aldaar op 26   maart 1681 voor de kerk (2) met Maijcken Evertsen.  (Zij was weduwe van Hendrik Janse, overleden voor 1681.)

A restored farm near Zuilichem. Notice the straw roof and date 1653.



Were Maria and Johannes really married? We don't know, but suspect they were not. At that time the differences in the religious believes were so strong that it was not possible to have a Protestant mother be a witness at her baby's baptism in a Catholic Church. That was proven several times with the children of Maria and Johannes. The question as a priest or minister might have been, " Who will marry this couple that are of our different faiths? How can I truly accept this newly born as being Christ's child while the father is Catholic and the mother Protestant?"

Now we tend to be more open minded, but back then NO WAY, and yet . . . .


Here is an interesting story. It really happened in the southern part of the Netherlands where most people are Catholic. The place is Roermont. It has a cemetery with a very large burial site for the Catholics and a small area for Protestants. However the Protestants are separated with a tall brick wall. Jewish people have their own place towards the back, also with a tall brick wall.

In 1842 a twenty-two year old Catholic woman of nobility (J.W.C. van Gorkum) married a colonel in the Dutch Cavalry. He was not of nobility and was Protestant as well. That must have been the scandal of the century in Roermont. However, the marriage had lasted almost forty years, when the colonel died. Eight years later the woman past away also. She had refused to be laid to rest in the family's large tomb and, instead, had ordered the monument that you can still see today. She lies on one side of the wall, he on the other, still holding hands.


 

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