Category: 52 Ancestors 2024

52W Mark III – Week 40: Least

I’m at least a week behind in the 52 Ancestors Challenge, but as Amy just reminded me less than ten minutes ago, there is no behind, only progress!

Many countries have an honours system to recognize the contributions of its citizens. According to a 2004 memo to the Select Committee on Public Administration of the UK House of Commons, with the exception of Switzerland and Ireland, every western state has instituted some system by which worthy individuals can be recognized. The United States has the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The British have their knighthoods. In Canada, we have the Order of Canada, which even at the highest rank does not denote a knighthood, unlike the on again off again highest rank of the Order of Australia, although it’s been “off again” since 1986. Even our provinces have these honour systems – in British Columbia we have the Order of British Columbia.

Inaugural Order of BC recipient Bryan Adams.

[Interlude while I look for the autograph I have of Bryan Adams. I cherish it not because of the signature, but because of the person who gave it to me. Adams was one of the recipients of the Order of British Columbia the first year it was awarded. I was working in the B.C. Parliament Buildings at the time. The office I shared with three other interns was right next door to the committee room where they bestowed the medals. We had a window looking into that room, but they made us close the blinds. One of the dearest members of the legislature’s dining room staff, who was attending to the coffee and treats for the ceremony, asked Adams for an autograph for each of the four of us, without our knowledge. Later she presented them to us, saying ” you nice boys might be fans so I thought you might like these.“]

However, since this week’s prompt is “Least”, I’m going to look at the lowest ranks of these honours. While I have extended family who hold the lowest rank of the Order of Canada, I’m going to look at a very distant cousin of mine who has received a similar honour in the Netherlands.

While the Netherlands is a constitutional monarchy (like Canada), there isn’t really much of a nobility and things like knighthoods are fairly understated. Titles, prefixes, or post-nominals are not used in the Netherlands in relation to civilian honours, so those who have been bestowed with a Dutch civil honour do not have any indication of their appointment in their names, regardless of the level or degree. Even Members of the Order of Canada (the lowest of three levels) are entitled to use “CM” after their names!

Nicolaas Johannes van der Fluit (1932 – 2009), a very distant cousin of mine (third cousin once removed, to be precise) was named a member of the Orde van Oranje-Nassau (Order of Orange-Nassau) in 2009. According to the familiebericht (family notice) of Nicolaas’s death, he was a “Drager van de zilveren medaille verbonden aan de Orde van Oranje-Nassau Ridder in de Orde van Oranje-Nassau” (Bearer of the silver medal of the Order of Orange-Nassau and (Knight in the Order of Orange-Nassau).

The Order of Orange Nassau is the lowest order of chivalry in the Netherlands, granted to individuals who have made a special contribution to society. Apparently about 4500 people are appointed to the various levels every year. Nicolaas’s appointment was in recognition of his contributions to the field of sports, community welfare, and housing and culture.

When I began to research this honour I was confused by the designation in Nicolaas’s familiebericht. The silver medal (along with gold and bronze) was only an honourary designation. Holders of the medal were affiliated with, but not actual members of, the Order of Orange-Nassau. “Ridder” was separate from the honorary levels and was the lowest rank of the order, just above gold, silver, and bronze.

However, in 1996, the order was reformed and the various levels were replaced with six grades. Gold, silver, and bronze were replaced with by the “Member” class (“Lid”, in Dutch), which is currently the sixth and lowest level of the Order. The Member designation is no longer an affiliate level, so those holding the designation are actually members of the order. Ridder remains the fifth level of the order.

Based upon the familiebericht, it appeared to me that Nicolaas might have been originally named to the silver level, but was elevated to ridder at some later time.

My father’s uncle, Jan Meester (1925 – 2012) was also part of the Order of Orange Nassau. What little information I have about his appointment is that he had received a “Medal of Honor, attached to the Order of Orange Nassau in Silver”. This suggests his appointment was prior to 1996; however, as with Nicolaas’s familiebericht, that could be misleading. I also do not know the activities Jan had performed that garnered him the honour.

For Nicolaas, I resolved the matter when I found the notice of his appointment in the Staatscourant, the official publication of the Kingdom of the Netherlands since 1814. It is the equivalent of the Canada Gazette. (I have not yet found a copy of the Staatscourant with Jan’s appointment.)

The October 9, 2009 edition (#15208) states:

Bij Koninklijk besluit van 29 september 2009, no. 09.002791, is benoemd tot Lid in de Orde van Oranje-Nassau: N.J. van der Fluit, wonende te Zuid-Scharwoude (gem. Langedijk).

In English: By Royal decree of September 29, 2009, No. 09.002791 is named as a Member of the Order of Orange-Nassau: N.J. van der Fluit, residing in Zuid-Scharwoude (in the municipality of Langedijk).

Thus Nicolaas was appointed to the order after it was reformed in 1996 and at the lowest level of the order, Lid (Member). Nevertheless, I would imagine it was an incredible honour to receive. I wonder if a nice lady obtained his autograph for anyone.

52W Mark III – Week 39: Homestead

I’ve covered a lot of ground1 on the topic of “Homestead” in past posts. As a result, it’s been hard to think of something new for this week’s prompt for the 52 Ancestors Challenge – so much so that I’m now a week late.

What I can offer is this handy graphic that might be of use to family historians trying to find their ancestors’ homesteads in the Canadian Prairies.

Note: “HBC” stands for “Hudson’s Bay Company”

1 All puns are intended.

52W Mark III – Week 38: Symbol

I have many farmers in my family tree. Most grew crops, although a few practiced animal husbandry on a small scale as a small part of their farming activities. Several had cows, although not to such a degree that I would describe them as having cattle, which to me connotates something more like ranching.

Two of my direct maternal ancestors had their brands recorded in a register published by the Utah state legislature, published in the Book of Recorded Marks and Brands in 1874. It records all brands used in the Utah Territory from its establishment to 1874.

My Gx4 grandfather, William Burgess (1794-1880) used a brand that looked like a number “2” with a flourished serif and an arch above. William’s eldest son with his first wife, Harrison, also had a brand recorded in the book. Harrison’s brand, recorded on June 5, 1867, was a sideways capital “H”, placed on the right shoulder. Harrison also used a cropped ear mark, consisting of two “v” notches out of the upper side of the left ear.

William Burgess’s brand

On another branch of my maternal line, my Gx3 grandfather Henry Lyman Cook (1803-1869) has a brand recorded in the book, dated December 2, 1868. The brand was a capital “H” which was placed at the right jaw.

Henry Lyman Cook’s brand

I have also found a subsequent publication of this book, compiled in 1901. However, I have not found any family in that edition. William, Harrison, and Henry had all passed away by then. My more recent direct ancestors were not farming at that time, while others had left the state by then. Sometime I may have to look into what records there might be for brands used in Alberta, where many of these people had settled.

52W Mark III – Week 37: Tombstone

After last week’s inadvertent repeat, I took great care to check before starting this week’s post for the 52 Ancestors Challenge. Why, look at this! The prompt for Week 46 in 2022 was “Tombstones”!

Just because it’s written in stone doesn’t mean it’s correct.

A prime example in my tree is the headstone for my mother’s maternal grandfather, Heronimus Michael Lerner (1895 – 1954), who went by Jerome. However, the headstone on his grave is in memory of “Ronimus Lerner”. It’s clear that there had not been a preceding “Je” that wore away or that had been otherwise removed.

Headstone for Heronimus “Jerome” Lerner, Fox Valley Cemetery, Fox Valley, Saskatchewan

Another example is in the nearby Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Cemetery in Rastadt, Saskatchewan, where a number of my mother’s ancestors and relatives are interred. The marker for my mother’s great aunt, Marianne Roeder, says she died “6/21/29” (June 21, 1929). However, church records show that she died on June 2, 1921 and was buried July on 1, 1921.

Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Cemetery at Rastadt, Saskatchewan, April 1, 1997. 

While there are several other examples in my tree, my wife’s maternal line has a significant number of tombstone typos.

The headstone for my wife’s Gx2 grandmother, Ellen Sophie Butcher Dwyer (1867 – 1952), puts her year of birth as 1866 or 1867, but the record of her marriage puts her year of birth as 1865. The 1921 census puts her birth in 1867. The headstone for Ellen’s grandmother, Agnes Pellow (1794 – 1869) erroneously states that she died in 1879.

Other apparent errors might not actually be so. For example, my wife’s Gx11 grandfather, Thomas Newman. Thomas most likely lived from about 1560 to 1649, dying at age 89. His headstone says that he was was “over eighty years old” at the time of his death. If he died at 80, Thomas would have been 15 years old when his third child, Richard, was born. However, it was more likely that Thomas was age 20 when his first child was born. While it might seem that Thomas’s headstone may have been incorrect, if Thomas died at age 89 then it was correct to say he was over 80 years old at the time of his death.

These examples underscore the importance of at least two of the elements of the Genealogical Proof Standard: the need for reasonably exhaustive research and to resolve any contradictory evidence.