Darrell Brent Kitchen Family Manuscript - Preface
A History and Background of the Kitchen Family
Chapters 3 and 4
@ Copyright 1997 by Darrell B. Kitchen
This is a continuation of a document written by Mr. Darrell Kitchen on the history and background of the Kitchen Family. It offers a wonderful glimpse into the past, dating back to England and Ireland in the early 1600's, and is an excellent reference source for genealogical research. Chapters 3 and 4 are included in this web page and Chapters 5 through 7 will be added shortly. In permitting the document to be published, Mr. Kitchen asked that we convey his desire that it be used for personal use only and that it not be copied for commercial purposes. He also ask that it be viewed as a "work under construction...that is, it contains many grammatical errors, also a few mistakes and some assumptions made that I now am challenging...in other words, a working draft it is."
Mr. Kitchen can be reached by eMail at ([email protected] )
Chapter 3
The Voorhis Family Collateral: Dutch Reformed Pioneers
During a period in history when Henry Hudson sailed to what is now
New York City and soon after the famous purchase of Manhattan Island, the
Dutch began to settle the magnificent island they called, "The
Flatlands". During the late 1600's, New York City was called New
Amsterdam and a visitor would have thought they were in the Netherlands.
These early settlers from Holland built houses like those in their own
country. They had steep roofs, sloping lines, and the short side of
their homes faced the streets instead of the longer side, which is more
prevalent today. There were windmills, women in full skirts and men in
wide brim hats. This was little "Holland" and the influence that was
thrust forward has shaped our environment for many years.
In this Dutch settlement, meals were a traditional time when
families would gather with the father at the head of the table. There
was little talk, but they enjoyed the hearty meals. Tea was the favorite
drink and shredded cabbage, or kohl sla, was often the salad. This
cabbage salad today is cole slaw, and is still enjoyed by many. They
also concentrated on cakes, pies, and sweets. The religious practices
were those of the Dutch Reformed Church, which had come to America in the
early 1600's.
It is a family from this Dutch background that became a collateral
of the Kitchen family. Richard Kitchen, who came to America in 1779,
married Maragrieta Voorhis in 1783. The following is a history of her
family and the background of this first Kitchen family in America.
In referring to the family name, the spelling most often presented
is "Voorhees". The correct spelling for the Kitchen-Voorhis family
alliance is "Voorhis". Other common forms and spellings, include; van
Voorhees, Voorhees, Van Vorhees, Vorhees, Van Voorhis, Voorhis, Vorhis,
Voris, Van Voorheis, Voorheis, and Vorheis. Perhaps the most official
family name is Van Voorhees. The "Van Voorhees Family" genealogy has
been compiled and was first published in 1888, by Elias W. Van Voorhis.
The study was updated and published again in 1932 by, The Van Voorhees
Association.
The Van Voorhees Association was organized on January 16, 1932,
primarily to commemorate, in 1935, the 275th anniversary of the arrival
of Steven Coerte Van Voorhees and his family at the New Netherlands
location in America. Their settlement was on Long Island at Amersfoort,
now Flatlands, Brooklyn, New York. Temporary officers were selected and
eight members of the family assumed a role on the Central Committee.
Permanent officers were elected on May 21, 1932 and included:
Oscar M. Voorhees, D.D., President
3531 78th Street, Jackson Heights
Long Island, New York
Sadie Estelle Voorhees, (Mrs. Edward Dawson), 127 Passaic Avenue
Passaic, New Jersey
Harry Stephen Vorhis, Secretary
50 Vanderbilt Avenue
New York, New York
Wheeler N. Voorhees, Treasurer
1878 Coney Island Avenue
Brooklyn, New York
Irving W. Voorhees, M.D., Executive Committee, Officer
140 East 54th Street
New York, New York
Stephen Robin Voris, Executive Committee, Officer
2526 East 26th Street
Brooklyn, New York
Ralph S. Voorhees
1788 West 11th Street
Brooklyn, New York.
These representatives of the Van Voorhees family, some in the
eleventh and twelfth generations, are indebted to the work of Elias W.
Van Voorhis, whose 725 page compilation formed the basis for the work of
the association. It was not possible for Elias to trace all family
lines, nor was his work free from errors. It is a very comprehensive
compilation of research and the work of the association was directed to
the interests of all those who bear the Voorhees name, however they spell
it, and to the many who are related through collateral lines. Through
Richard Kitchen, there is this collateral relationship.
Albert van Voorhees, in his time, was merely known as, "Albert, from
in front of Hies". Hies was a hamlet near Ruinen, in Drenthe Province,
Netherlands. The name is literally interpreted as "from in front of
Hies", or Van Voor Hies. This family came, who came to America in 1660,
were Dutch Reformed Churchmen. Albert was born on an undetermined date
prior to 1600 and probably about 1560. It is known that he had a grandson
born in 1600. Therefore, it is apparent that Albert must have been born
on or before 1575. It is also known that he lived an unusually long
life, being deceased at an age of over 100 years. He died with six of
his nine children surviving him.
Albert's nine children were:
Coert Albertse;
Steven Albertse;
Hendrick Albertse, who had five children living in 1684;
Suytgen van Haecxwolf, who had one child living in 1684;
Jan van Heffrlying, who died prior to 1684, but was survived by a
daughter living at that time;
Hilbert Albertse, died about 1684;
Wesvel Alberste, died in 1684, with one son and one daughter living;
Geertjen Albertse van Oshaer en Veghten; and
Merghin van Voorhees, who married Jan Mervas Van der Hught;
It is interesting to note, that the second names given are the same as
the name of the father, Albert. Also note the addition of the "se"
suffix. This adaptation of the father's name seems to be consistently
applied throughout many generations.
The next generation in the Kitchen lineage is through the eldest son
of Albert,"from in front of Hies", Coert Albertse van Voorhees. Coert,
also had lived in the Hamlet in front of Hies in Drenthe Province,
Holland. At the time of his death, he was survived by seven children.
Their names were:
Steven Coerte;
Hilbert Coerte, who was born in 1634, had two sons and one
daughter by a first marriage and five sons by a second marriage;
Jan Coerte, who, in 1684, resided on the old family homestead in Hies;
Albert Coerte van Bethuyn, who married a woman with the
given name of Aeltyn who died prior to1699;
Wesvel Coerte van Veenings, who died before 1699;
.
Daughter, name unknown, and another
.
Daughter, name unknown.
Again, it is interesting to see the use of their father's first name
as their second given name. In this generation, a suffix "e", is added
to the paternal given name of Coert.
The third generation brought forward to the Kitchen family
connection is again through the eldest son. His name was Steven Coerte
van Voorhees. Steven was born in, or about, 1600 in or near Hies,
Holland in Drenthe Province. According to the records, Steven Coerte Van
Voorhees is the first paternal American ancestor of the family. He died
at the Flatlands, Long Island, on February 16, 1684. He had sailed from
the land of his birth in April 1660, aboard a ship called, "The Bonte
Cou", or "Spotted Cow". He was accompanied by his first wife and all of
their children, with the exception of two daughters, Hendrickjen and
Mergh.
On November 29, 1660, he purchased, at the Flatlands, a farm
composed of cornland, woodland, plain land and salt meadows. Also, there
was a house, a house plot, and a brewery with all the necessary
apparatuses. Having made such a substantial purchase so soon after his
arrival in America, may suggest that he was a man of substantial
financial means. In 1667 he was assessed on a patent and in 1664 he
became a Magistrate, or person having judicial powers to enforce the law,
such as a Judge or Justice of the Peace.
His will is dated August 25, 1667. By his first wife, Steven Coerte
had ten children, all of whom were born in Holland. The children were:
Hendrickjen Stevense, who married Jan Kiers and came to
America several years after her father;
Mergh Stevense, who married twice and followed her father to
America. She died on October 28, 1702;
.
Coerte Stevense who was born in 1637 and died in 1702. He married,
before 1664 to Marytje Gerritse van Couwenhoven, who was the daughter of
Gerrit Wolfertse van Couwenhoven;
Lucas Stevense;
Jan Stevense was born in 1652. His will was probated on November
20, 1735. His first marriage was on March 17, 1678 to Cornelia Reiniers
Wizzel-penning. On October 8, 1680, Jan Stevense married Femmentje Auke
van Nuyse. She was baptized on March 12, 1662;
Albert Stevense of the Flatlands and later of Hackensack, New
Jersey, was first married to Barentje Williams and second to Tilletje
Reiniers Wizzel-penning;
Altje Stevense, was born in 1656 and married in 1673 to Barent
Jurianz Ryder;
Jannetje Stevense, who first married Jan Martense Schenck, died in
1689. On February 29, 1690, she married Alexander Sympson;
Hendrickje Stevense, became the wife of Jan Kiersted and later had
a second marriage to Albert Albertse Terhune of the Flatlands, Long
Island and of Hackensack, New Jersey. She was baptized on August 13,
1651 and her will was proved on February 3, 1704;
Abraham Stevense, of Flatbush and Princeton, New Jersey, married to
Janette Kershaw.
Again, the use of Steven's name with a "se" suffix is seen
throughout the ten children's given second names. Lucas Stevense, the
fourth child and son of Steven Coerte Van Voorhees' first marriage, was
born in Holland about 1650. He died in the Flatlands, Long Island, New
York in 1713. He was a member of the Dutch Reformed Church at the
Flatlands according to records dated in 1677. He was also recorded as an
Elder of the Dutch Reformed Church there in 1711. He was assessed for
taxes at the Flatlands in 1675 and was established as a Magistrate there
in 1680. He had a child baptized in Hackensack, New Jersey in 1685 and
he took the oath of allegiance to England at the Flatlands in 1687.
Lucas was married three times and had children by all three
marriages. He first married Catharine Hansen van Noorstrand, the
daughter of Hanse van Noorstrand and Jannecken Gerritse van Loon. His
second marriage was on January 26, 1689 to a woman name, Jannetje
Minnes. She was the daughter of Minne Johannis and Rensie Faddans. A
final and third marriage occurred in 1703 between Lucas Stevense Van
Voorhees and Catharine Van Dyke.
There were twelve children that were born through these three
marriages. The names of the children were:
Eldhert Lucasse of the Flatlands, Flatbush and Jamaica, Long
Island had his will proved on April 17, 1722. He married Styntje
Hendrickse who was the daughter of Hendrick Hermanse. This family
abandoned the use of the Van Voorhees family name and all descendants
bear the last name "Eldert". I have wondered if this was the result of
his father's oath of allegience to England.
Johannes (Jan) Lucasse, who was baptized on September 7, 1679 and
first married Ann Janse Van Duyckhuysen. He married a second time to
Mayke R. Schenck, of Franklin Township, Somerset County, New Jersey; and
a third and final time to Jannetje Remsen.
Hans Lucasse, who married Neeltje Nevius of New Brunswick, New
Jersey. They had one son, Petrus, who was in 1718. There are no further
records on this family.
Albert Lucasse married Adriana Ditmars of New Brunswick, New
Jersey. They had five children as follows:
Adrian, who married Phebe Ryder of Gravesend,
Long Island. Adrian's son, Lawrence, married Jane
Geristan of Flatbush, Long Island;
Lucas, who married Hilletje Vanderbilt, at New
Brunswick, New Jersey. Their children included
Jerimias, who married Lena Terhune, and Johannes;
Cornelius who married Elizabeth Johnson of New
Brunswick, New Jersey;
Albert, who married Adriana Vandervoort,
Johannes who married Antie Schenck of
Franklin Park, New Jersey.
Roelof Lucasse, married Helen Stoothoff from
New Brunswick, New Jersey and they had four
children as follows: Luke Voorhees, married
to Catharine Kennedy;
Garret Voorhees, married Deborah of
Berards Township, Somerset County;
Roelof Vorhees, who married Lena and;
Johannis, husband of Nelly Sutphen of
Monmouth County, New Jersey.
Minnie Lucasse, who married Antie Wyckoff
of New Brunswick, New Jersey, had five
children as follows:
Lucas Vorhees who married Catrina
Vandervoort;
Garret Vorhees the husband of Neeltje
Nevius of Middlebush, New Jersey;
Minne Vorhees, an officer of the American
Revolution, who married Mary of Hillsboro;
Johannes who married Femmetje Vanderveer
and;
Abraham Vorhees who married Maria Van
Doren of Reading, Ohio.
Abraham Van Voorhees who married Neeltje Cortelyou of Middlebush,
New Jersey. There are three known children as follows:
Lucas and his wife Neeltje of Franklin Park;
Abraham and his wife, Geertie of Franklin Park
Jacques Voorhees who married Nellie Van Doren.
Stephen Janse Van Vorhees, who married Catrina of Jamaica, Long
Island, New York. They had seven children, who were; William who married
Allada of Hunterdon County, New Jersey; John Vorhis and his wife, Maria
Springsteen of Haverstraw, Rockland County, New Jersey; Stephen Voris and
Ann Baldwin his wife, of Westchester County, New York; Cornelius and
Femmetje Vorhees of New Utrecht, New York; Ruluf Voris and his wife,
Cornelia of Hempstead, New York; Lucas Voris who married a woman from New
Brunswick with a given name of Mary.
Auke Janse Van Voorhees, wife unknown, resided in Harlingen, New
Jersey;
Jan Janse Van Voorhees, who married Neeltje Nevius of Staten
Island, New York. They had three children as follows:
Jan and wife, Lea Springsteen;
Jacobus and his wife, Sarah Culver of
Hackensack and;
Abraham, who resided with his wife and
family in Bridgewater Township, Somerset
County, New Jersey;
Lucas J. Vorhees, wife unknown, with a child, Simon Voris;
Albert J. Vorhees, whose wife's name is not known. They had three
children as follows:
Aaron, and with wife, Maria resided in
Harlingen, New Jersey;
Albert husband of Nellie and;
Cornelius whose wife was named Lena.
Johannes, or Jan, Lucasse was born on February 19, 1679 first
married the daughter of Jan Teunissen Van Duyckhusen and Gertrude
Vandervliet who was named Ann Janse Van Duyckhuysen. Ann was born on
April 7, 1677 and died on January 5, 1702. They had one son, Johannes,
who was born on July 19, 1700. Johannes married Sarah Schenck on May 16,
1721 and he died on January 21, 1733. Sarah was the daughter of Jan
Rolofse and Sara Kouwenhoven Schenck. On March 5, 1704, Jan Lucasse
married Mayke R. Schenck who was born on January 14, 1684 and who died
on November 25, 1736. They had thirteen children as follows:
Lucas, born on September 15, 1705 and died January 16, 1784. He
married Altje Ryder on May 17, 1728;
Roelof, born August 19, 1708 and died in April 1782. He was
married to Deborah Cortelyou;
Stephen, born March 24, 1709 in a location called Flatbush, where
his brothers and sisters were also born. He married Maria Lake on
October 23, 1753;
Antie, born November 28, 1710 and died in infancy;
Petrus, (or Peter), who was born on January 6, 1712, married a
woman named Mary. He died on April 3, 1751 at the age of thirty-nine;
Martin, born on March 26, 1714, had a wife named Elizabeth;
Isaac, born March 16, 1716 and first married a woman Sarah. His
second marriage was to Helena Barkaloo.
Catlyntje, born June 8, 1718 and married to Simon Van Arsdalen;
Garret, born September 6, 1720 and married to Johanna Van Harlingen;
Anna, who was born on July 15, 1723;
Abraham, born June 8, 1725 and died on November 15, 1807. He was
married on May 9, 1747 to Adrianna Lefferts;
Sarah, who was born on October 18, 1727; and
Maria, who was born on April 5, 1731.
After the death of Mayke R. Schenck Van Vorhees, Jan Lucasse married
for a third time. This marriage occurred on January 25, 1737. His third
wife was Jannetje Remsen, who was born on July 27, 1701 and died on
August 24, 1747. Her birth was also in Flatbush, the home of the Jan
Lucasse family. They had no children, as I imagine they felt that Jan's
fourteen children were sufficient in number. Much of the research
regarding the family of Jan Lucasse was compiled by Armida Sharpin of
Valparaiso, Indiana. In 1991, she published the, Remsen Relatives,
which I secured from the New York City Genealogical Society collection.
Her research and work were excellent.
The sixth child, and son, Petrus (Peter) Van Voorhees (Voorhis) was
born on January 6, 1712 and married a woman with the given name of Mary.
Petrus and Mary had two children, Johannis and Stephen. Stephen Petrus
Van Voorhis was born in 1739 and married Margaretta Van Dyke.
Stephen and Margaretta Van Dyke Voorhis, had at least one child,
Maragrieta, or Margaret Voorhis. Margaret was born June 17, 1763 and
died on October 8, 1849. It is Margaret Voorhis, who is eight
generations removed from "Albert, from in Front of Hies", who in 1783 in
New Brunswick, New Jersey, married an emigrant from England, Richard
Kitchen.
This begins the first generation of the Richard and Margaret Voorhis
Kitchen family in America.
Chapter 4
The First Generation In America:
Richard and Margaret Voorhis Kitchen
Richard Kitchen and Margaret Voorhis were married in New Jersey in
1783. This union was the first connection the Kitchen family had with
the Dutch Reformed Church. Many generations of Dutch Reformed Church
relationships are clearly established with the Van Voorhees clan, yet
there is nothing to suggest that Richard Kitchen, or the Kitchen family
in general, was inclined to follow the Dutch Reformed theology and
lifestyles. According to early New Jersey records, this marriage took
place in New Brunswick, New Jersey.
The American Revolution was coming to an end and there had been many
battles and conflicts in the area around their place of marriage. New
Brunswick, New Jersey experienced confrontation and Monmouth had a
conflict as late as June 28, 1778. Though most of these more specific
conflicts of the revolution precede Richard's arrival in America by
approximately one year, it creates an environment which causes a curious
historian to question the relevancy of his date of emigration in 1779 to
his attachment with his homeland of England.
In addition, Richard Kitchen's arrival in 1779 would have seen the
war reaching a stalemate in the North. Although the British were
occupying New York City, they were nearly surrounded by American forces.
Slowly the British began to move the war to the southern states, where
more sympathy was known to exist for the Loyalists.
Another very important influence in early America came from the
Calvinists. Calvinism was derived from the theology of a Frenchman, John
Calvin, who wrote his "Institutes of the Christian Religion" in 1536 at
Geneva, Switzerland. To the Calvinists, God was less a figure of love
and mercy than of majestic power. Man was innately evil and salvation
came to a small minority while most were doomed to damnation by God's
"predestination". The Bible was not merely the word of God but the law
to be rigorously enforced upon the world of sinners. Local congregations
maintained the control over local church decisions and above all, the
Calvinists glorified "work and thrift".
A man who achieved success by working hard at his calling and saving
money was deemed to enjoy the favor of God. As a corollary, Calvinists
tended to see poverty as God's punishment for idleness and
self-indulgence. Calvinism spread rapidly, especially among business
people in the urban centers. The dominant theologies which maintained
similarities with these belief systems included the Dutch Reformed
Church, German Reformed Church, English Puritans and the Scot
Presbyterians. The Dutch Reformed and other conservative churchmen,
attempted to create higher learning environments that would train more
ministers. In 1766, the Dutch Reformed Church established Rutgers. In
1764 the Baptist created Brown; in 1746 the Presbyterians established
Princeton; and in 1769 the Congregationalists started Dartmouth. This
was occurring during the generation immediately preceding the American
Revolution and was called the "Great Awakening". The presence of the
Awakening was to create a communion with God, a strong sense of
conversion and the rededication of individuals to fundamental Christian
values.
Theodorus Frelinghuysen, a German born minister of the Dutch
Reformed Church, began the movement with prayer meetings in New Jersey in
the 1720's. The least tangible, but perhaps the most important change
that was caused by this was the erosion of ancient traditions of social
deference on the part of the poor toward those of superior wealth and
power. Newly converted "saints" of lower class backgrounds found in
their conversion, confidence to challenge the traditional prerogatives of
their social superiors who remained unconverted. It is significant that
the Baptists and Methodists, which were the denominations favored by the
lower classes, experienced an increase in membership. In only one
generation, they became the largest and most numerous membership among
the religious groups in early America.
Though this work is not intended to present research on the affects
of religion in the development of America, it is hopeful that this will
introduce an overview that reveals the association of religious beliefs
with the social and governance environment at the time of Richard's
arrival in America and his marriage into Margaret's Dutch Reformed family.
Soon after their marriage, Richard and Margaret Kitchen pioneered
westward together to Adams County (then called York County),
Pennsylvania. This effort enabled the establishment of the first site
for the Dutch Reformed Church near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The
establishment of the church and this theology in Gettysburg was known as
the Conewago Colony movement. This took place between 1765 and 1793,
when people primarily from Bergen and Somerset Counties in New Jersey
moved west with their families and faith. According to legend, as many
as one hundred and fifty families participated in this movement. A
closer inspection of the actual baptismal records of the early church
supports that there were actually one hundred sixty-seven families
represented in the Dutch Reformed Churchmen's westward migration.
The early church baptismal records only included the names of
families who had children born in them. Therefore, an allowance for a
few childless families must be added to the church counts. In addition,
there were undoubtedly unmarried men and women and also a number of
children who would have been born to parents while still living in New
Jersey. It may be estimated that the people who formed the Conewago
Colony movement were not less than one thousand.
The calculation supporting this number is as follows:
Number of parents reported (2 times 167 families).......................334
Number of unmarried men and women migrating............................50
Number of children migrating......................................................150
Number of children baptized at Conewago..................................541
Less the number of deaths at Conewago.....................................(75)
TOTAL living at Conewago at one time....................................1,000
This calculation is a rough estimate, but is quite probable and is
the consensus of many historians. It is known that in 1817 only five
Dutch families remained near this original Gettysburg location. Many of
the families went to Kentucky, around Mercer County. One of the original
167 families and one of the 5 remaining families included the Richard
Kitchen family.
Of the one hundred sixty-seven families represented in the baptismal
records, about one-third of the families were from Bergen County, New
Jersey. In that time, many names were duplicated in Bergen and Somerset,
particularly the Dutch surnames. As a result, an exact accounting of the
names, families and their nativity cannot be made. A few names and
records indicate that there were a few settlers from parts of Essex and
Middlesex Counties also. The majority, however, were from Somerset and
primarily from the townships of Hillsborough, Franklin and Montgomery.
It is interesting to note, that even though Gettysburg was a far distance
from these counties, they were often visited by their old Somerset
pastors, Van Harlingen, Hardenbergh, and Leydt. They traveled one
hundred sixty miles to make these visits. This was a far distance to
travel in these days during our early American history.
A two year period of baptismal records has been reviewed from this
old Conewago Colony church. There were two children born of Richard and
Margaret Kitchen. On July 24, 1785 Richard Kitchen, (recorded as Derrick
Cichim), and Margaret, (recorded as Marigrieta Voorhis), had a daughter,
Maria. The spellings noted in these early Dutch records were certainly
not reliable or correct for many of the families reviewed. It appears
from these records that Richard may have been known as "Dick" and that
the spelling was either copied wrong or misspelled. On November 12,
1786, Richard, (recorded as Richard Kichin), and Margaret, (recorded as
Maragrieta Voorhees), had another daughter, Maragrieta.
During their lifetime, Richard and Margaret Kitchen had thirteen
children. This is proven by numerous court records and documents which
I secured through work with the Adams County Historical Society in
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The children, as presented in one of the many
court documents, were named in order of birth.
The children were as follows:
Stephen K.;
Mary, (who remained unmarried);
Margaret, (who married Isaac Patterson);
Joseph;
John C;
Richard;
Peter;
Esther, (who married Isaac Bercaw);
Henry;
Hannah, (who married William Bercaw);
Sarah, (who married a Mr. King);
Edward, (my Great Great Great Grandfather); and
Abraham.
One of the documents listing the thirteen children was dated
September 20, 1814 and stated that the last five named, (Henry, Hannah,
Sarah, Edward and Abraham) were under the age of fourteen years.
This completes a presentation of the formation of the Richard and
Margaret Voorhis Kitchen family. The following chapters present the
development of these thirteen children and their families.
Continue to Chapters 5 through 7
Continue to Chapters 8 through 14
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