Please note: For continuity and to show how this family fits into the history of LaPorte County, I am listing the families information for LaPorte County first. Then we will show, at the bottom of the page, how they fit in to the larger picture of the DeMeyer family group.
Additions from Web Master, D. West -
& Historians Donna Nelson & Glen McGlothlin
LaPorte Connections
for the DeMyer family.
Abraham (son of John) b. 1808 (DRC, Kingston, NY)
Abraham DeMyer
family, [notice last name spelling changed], moved to area around LaPorte,
Indiana
{as did his brother William and wife Ann E.}
(Abraham) Abram S, DeMyer was married to
Helen Maria Henricks, Dec. 29, 1829 at Glas ? {perhaps Glasco} NY .... she died
May 24, 1842. He then married Rachel Van Ben Schoten (about 6 months after the
death of his first wife.)
Abraham and Rachel had the following
Children
Reference 1850 Census • New York • Ulster • Kingston
Town
It appears that father John is living with them and he is 78 years of
age. Abraham's occupation is a hotel keeper.
Abraham is 62 and Rachel is
27
The age tells it all as some of the older children must not have been
hers.
Children in household:
Henry 20
Maria 17
Sybil 12
Abraham
11
Mary A. 5
Van Ben Shoten 1
(a son William will be born later this
same year Dec. 9, 1850)
Abraham married Rachel Van Benschoten. They stayed in Saugerties, NY...
had a family. Abraham died Mar. 4, 1859 and is buried there.
Rachel
stayed until July 1, 1868. when she "removed with her family to a farm on
Stillwater Prairie, LaPorte County, Ind. In 1872 she m. 2nd. William De Myer,
brother of her first husband ....." Here at Kingsbury, LaPorte Co., Ind. Rachel
continued to reside until 1880 when she removed to Chicago. She was always a
member of the Dutch Reformed Church while it was accessible to her; in its
absence, in the west, she joined the Society of Friends".. etc. [taken from pg.
695 Van Benschoten Van Bunschoten Family in America ... published 1907] Rachel
is buried next to Abraham in Saugerties, NY
[VBS: page 694-95] FYI: after Abraham died, and Ann E. died...Rachel married her brother-in-law... William [ born 1812 in Kingston, NY.]
* Here I have to disagree with the author above: Yes, in 1880 Rachel is
with her son's Van and James in Place Chicago, Cook, Illinois, pg 106C .
But she must have returned to LaPorte County, Indiana before 1900 as Rachel
is the head of household and living in LaPorte County, Indiana, Union Township
in the 1900 census.
Rachel will later return to Chicago before her death 23
Feb 1904. One statement we have found shows Rachel died in Chicago in Feb 23,
1904 and is buried in Forest Home cemetery, Chicago and another states that her
body was returned and buried next to Abraham's in New York.
Her son Van B.
is living with her and she states she was born in NY Jan 1822 and she is a
widow. Van B. is b. December 1848 and he is single. See other notes on this Van
B. DeMyer. Rachel also declares that she had 5 children, 3 of which are still
living in 1900.
For more information on Rachel's sons, see They Went That-a-way further down the page.
LaPorte Connections for the DeMyer
family.
1860 Federal Census for Pleasant Twp, LaPorte County we
find William DeMyer and his family.
William DeMyer 48, Anne E 44, Wm W 22,
Mary 18, Sarah 9, John R 1 and Ellen McDonald a domestic.
As an adult John
R. DeMeyer will marry Alma O. Coplin in LaPorte County on 20 May 1880. Mary A.
Marries Hiram Lincholt same county 1 Jan 1868.
Old Settler's list - Demyer,
William b: Ulster Co., NY April 22, 1812 came to La Porte June 1837, occupation
Farmer
The following is quoted from:
"An Illustrated Historical Atlas of
LaPorte County, Indiana" Compiled, Drawn and Published from Personal
Examinations and Surveys by Higgins, Belden and Co., Chicago, 1874.
WILLIAM
DEMYER was born in Kingston, Ulster County, N.Y., April 22, 1812.
His
ancestor, William Demyer, was born in Holland, September 20, 1655, married,
October 20, 1678, Catherine Bayard, and had Nicholas and Johannes.
Nicholas married, June 13, 1713, Elsie Schoonmaker, and had
Benjamin, born October 19, 1729.
Benjamin married Elizabeth Wyncoop,
February 20, 1744, and had Elizabeth, John, Nicholas and Mary.
John
married, in 1801, Elida Smith, and had Benjamin, Stephen, Hannah C., Abraham
S., William, Nicholas, Mary A., and D.W. Clinton.
William
married, first, Ann Eliza Woodmansee, of Kingston, N.Y., and had William W.,
Mary A., Sarah A., and John R. Mrs. Demyer died in 1872 and is buried in the
cemetery at Kingsbury, Ind. Mr. Demyer married, secondly, Mrs. Rachel S.
(Benscoter) (should have read Ben Shoten) Demyer, his brother's widow, sine
parole.
William W. married M. Elizabeth Jackson, and has Celia
A., Ada and Ida (twins), and John J.
Mr. Demyer, the subject of
this sketch, was educated in private schools in New York, aided his father on
the farm until sixteen years of age, then engaged as a clerk in a variety store
where he continued eight years. In 1837 he married and moved to Laporte County,
Ind. and purchased 160 acres of land south of his present residence.
In
1860 he bought the farm he now occupies, and built a substantial farm mansion,
a lithograph of which is contained in this volume. (See drawing in our old time
photos on this site)
Through the Wyncoops, Mr. Demyer is descended from
Anneke Jans (Bogardus), who was the owner of the New York Trinity Church
property, worth, probably $300,000,000. This property was leased by her
ninety-nine years. When the lease expired, the heirs did not claim it in
season, and the occupants hold it by right of possession. The matter has been
litigated, but the heirs have not as yet been successful. The descent is as
follows: Anneke Jans, and had William, who married Wintjie Suybrant; they had
Everadus, who married Siatie Huffman; they had Maria, who married Johannes
Wyncoop; they had Elizabeth, who married Benjamin Demyer; they had John, who
married Elida Smith - the parents of William, the subject of this sketch. The
Suybrant estate in Holland, amounting to $70,000,000, belongs to the heirs of
Wintjie Suybrant, who married William Bogardus, the fifth ancestor on the
stream of time back from Mr. Demyer.
This property has never been claimed
by the heirs.
In 1870 William age 57 (scribbled, very hard to read)
Living with this brother of Abraham is William's wife Ann E 53 yrs old, John 10
born in Indiana, Rachel 47 (William's brother Abraham's widow) and Van 21,
William 19 and James 18. The last three listed are children of Rachel. Van
definitely appears in the 1850 Census with his father Abraham on pg 103 Town of
Kingston, Ulster Co., NY as being 1 year old.
Civil War Record for William Demyer's son - William W. DeMyer
William
W Demyre : Enlist status Priv 07 October 1864 Drafted into Co F, 23rd Inf Reg
Ind 07 October 1864. MO Co. F, 23rd Inf Reg Ind 05 July 1865. His wife, Mary E.
later filed for widow's pension in 1901.
In 1870 we find William W's father living in Pleasant Township in the
1870 Federal Census, on page 304 and his son William W in in Union Township on
page 343.
In this household we find William W (son of William in Pleasant
twp) 31, Mary E 29, Celia A. 6 (b. Mar 1864 - Ref - 1900 Census) and twins Ada
and Ida 11/12. Ada and Ida do not appear in the 1880 census. One would assume
perhaps they died as either infants or young children. However there are now 3
more living children and they are John W. 6, Benj. F 4 (b. Oct 1876) and Demyer
Daughter 3 months.
Mary Elizabeth Jackson married William W. DeMeyer (son of
William) 26 Jun 1861
According to Packard's History of LaPorte County,
Indiana 1876, pg 175 - William DeMyer was one of the Prominent farmers in the
Union Township area.
By 1900 William b. May 1838 and his wife Mary b.
Jan 1842 are living in their daughter Celia's household with her husband in St.
Joseph County, IN, Lincoln Township, Walkerton town. Celia's brother Benjamin,
who is 23, is also living with them.
Research of Donna Nelson, LaPorte County, Indiana, shows the
following.
In the death book for Kingsbury cemetery, the following:
William DeMyer d: 10-1-1875 age 63 y 5 m 9 d
Ann Ella DeMyer (wife of
William) d: 6-6-1872 age 56y 27d
Sarah A. DeMyer (dau. of William &
Ann) d: 7-8-1872 age 22y 4m 28d
Pine Lake cemetery:
John R. DeMyer b:
1856 d: 1945
Alma O. (wife of John) b: 1863 d: 1945
LaPorte County Marriages from Donna Nelson
In the La Porte marriage
book, I found the following:
Claude DeMyer and Emma M. Ahrens 6-12-1904
(note different spelling below)
William W. DeMeyer and Mary Elizabeth
Jackson 6-26-1861
John F. DeMeyer and Alma O. Coplin 5-30-1880
Mary A.
DeMeyer and Hiram Wineholt 1-1-1862
News article from Glen McGlothlin - in the March 7, 1950 issue of the La
Porte Herald-Argus.
Howard A. DeMyer, local attorney and former
Republican county
prosecutor, today said he will make a bid for the coveted
circuit court judge seat. The 42-year-old, who lives at 2212 Indiana avenue,
said he will file his candidacy with the secretary of state "in a few days".
DeMyer claims to be a fourth generation La Portean with his great
grandfather coming here in 1832.
His political background includes city
councilman, 1934-38; county prosecutor, 1938-42; and deputy prosecutor,
1942-49.
A graduate of Indiana university law school in 1930 when he was
admitted to the bar, his legal career has been in La Porte. Attorney DeMyer is
married and has two children. He is a member of the First Methodist church, a
32nd degree Mason, an Elk, and a member of the Yacht Club.
Besides a
regular office in La Porte, he has offices in Union Mills and Westville where
he spends one day a week. > --- > This must be the same Howard DeMyer I
listed as a 1925 grad of L.P.H.S. His children aren't listed, so he must have
moved after 1950. I don't know if he won the judge's race.
Some LaPorte County Obituaries
DeMyer, Alma O., 81, mother: Martha
_____ father: David Coplin d: March 30, 1945
DeMyer, John R., 86, father:
William DeMyer d: July 11, 1945
What happened after they left LaPorte County?
They went that-a-way
* James B. DeMyer: (son of Abraham & Rachel) b. Dec 1846- he later
married Ferris, (Elizabeth) Lizzie H. in Cook County, Illinois 23 Dec 1885.
Lizzie was b. Oct 1860. (Note - James is left off of the 1850 census showing
Abraham and Rachel living in Kingston, New York.)
James & Elizabeth
had one child, a son, Gardner DeMyer, b. 22 Feb 1886 and he d. 17 Oct 1959 in
Los Angeles, CA. His wife Nellie Bertha Fleischman b. 22 Feb 1886 & died in
Los Angeles, CA 17 Oct 1959 .
According to the 1930 U.S. Federal Census for,
California, Los Angeles, Pasadena County, Gardner is a Plumbing salesman. In
this census, it shows a daughter, Harriet L. 21 yrs old and another daughter
Phyllis N., 15 yrs old.
Additional Refs: Cook Co., Chicago Ill, 1900 Census
& California Death index.
Note on Van B. Demyer, son of Rachel. We
find him in Cook County, Chicago, IL, ED: 1036 pg 1b at the age of 71 living as
a boarder in the Abel A. Westengard household. Van's marital status is single.
He died in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois 02 Feb 1939. This Van never married.
William b. 9 Dec. 1850 (this is Abraham's
son, not to be confused with Abraham's brother William, who also had a son
named William W. DeMyer.) In (June 5, 1874) this William married
Isabella McKittrick (b. Michigan Jan 1856) in Illinois and they lived in
Chicago and can be found there in the 1900 census 12th Ward, Cook County,
Chicago, IL.
In this census we see that Isabella had two children and two
are still living .
Gertrude, their daughter, is living with them in
this household and she was born July 1877 and states she has been married for 4
years with no children.
Their other child Van, was born Indiana
(March 11, 1875) and is not living at home.
Gertrude b. Michigan on 1 Jul
1876 and died 25 Sep 1950 in California.
She had married 1st on June 28,
1896, Arthur Hampton Little, in Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI, he was a
physician.
Gertrude, according to the Wisconsin Marriage Volume 28 pg
243,
then married Mr. Rains in Milwaukee County, WI in believe in Milwaukee
on 20 Aug 1907
Van, son of William and Isabella, moved to Utah with his
wife Adeline (West) and he later died on 10 Dec 1952 in Los Angeles, CA. VAN
and his wife Adaline are buried in Santa Monica, CA...at Woodlawn Cemetery off
14th Ave. (not proven)
In the 1920 U.S. Census • Utah • Salt Lake
• Salt Lake City we find Van, Adeline and son Robert 15 years of age.
Robert West DeMyer (son of Van) was b. 30 Jun 1904 in Illinois and he
died 10 Feb 1985 in Redding Co., Shasta, CA. Adeline was b. Illinois 23 Apr
1872 and d 13 Dec 1952 in Los Angeles,.
Robert is 25 and as he appears in
the 1930 U.S. Federal , CA, Alameda, Oakland County census with his parents as
being divorced. He is employed as a salesman for the coal mines and his father
is a representative for the coal mines.
I believe Robert's ex-wife was
Mary N (Tavares) DeMyer. on the same census as above, she is living with her
father James Tavares 51 yrs old b. in Portugal and his wife Mary E., 49 years
old, b. in California.
Mr. Tavaras occupation is an investment broker. They
are living in Alameda, Oakland Co, CA District 98 pg 241 a. Living with them is
Mary N's son Robert W. DeMyer Jr. who is 4 years old and b. California
.
This Robert Jr. is still living as of May 1, 2003
Mary states she was
19 years of age at the time of marriage. Mary N. DeMyer also states she is 24
On the SS Death index we learn that Mary was .
In addition to this,
there is a Alfred Baptista (brother in law) living in this household and he is
34 years of age. )(Born 20 Mar 1896 Died Jan 1975 - per SS death index. Died
Honolulu, Honolulu, HI)
Mary (Tavares) DeMyer Hendricks moved to Hawaii
about 1932 and died there some years later.
Death Notice IN Oakland CA
for William DeMyer
DE MYER - In Oakland 1927, William, husband of Isabelle
DeMyer and father of Mrs. Gertrude Rains and Van B. DeMyer, a native of New
York, aged 76 years. Friends are invited to attend the funeral at the Chapel of
Grant D. Miller, 2372 East Fourteenth street, corner Twenty-fourth Avenue,
Oakland, [CA] Thursday Aug. 11, 1927 at 3 o'clock p.m. Interment private.
ODDS & ENDS - Older family history below.
Key: Informational Sources:
1) DRC = Dutch
Reformed Church of Kingston, NY Baptismal Records 1638-1730
2) VBS =book: Van BenSchoten ; Bunschoten Family in America
[published 1907] (The green book DAD used to have.)
3) 1874 La Porte County (Indiana) Plat Book. note: there are errors in
this "sketch" of William, b. 1812, [Brother of Abraham b. 1808]... but it
gave me the linage I needed to connect the pieces.
4)
various programs from Ancestry.com, Olive Tree, dunelady.com; LDS church
records [by the way, few of them agree with each other !!]
I 11189
Nicholaes De Meyer b. 1635 Hamburg,
Germany d. 19 Mar 1691 {Lycos record} or 10 Dec. 1692
M. 6 June 1655 [DRC Marriage record]
Lydia Van
Dyck b. Ultecht, Netherlands I lll90 [d. 1687 in
Kingston, NY]
{Note: was Mayor in 1676}
2nd Son: Wilhelmus De Meyer
b. 21 Nov. 1657 {DRC}
d. 1711
M. Catherine Baynard
Son: Nicholas b.
14 Oct. 1683 (DRC, Kingston, NY)
Nicholas DeMeyer
I 12856 also I 12708900
d. 1766 m. 13 June 1713 Elsie Schoonmaker b. April 1692
Son: Benjamin (DRC, Kingston, NY) Benjamin m. Elizabeth Wyncoop she was b. 1744
Son: John b. 1771 (DRC, Kingston NY) John m. 1801 Elida
[Alida] Smith
Son: Abraham b. 1808 (DRC, Kingston, NY)
Abraham DeMyer family, [notice last name spelling changed], moved
to area around LaPorte, Indiana
{as did his brother
William and wife Ann E.}
NOTE: Where there are two dates, I have put down both. the "I" numbers are for genealogy programs, some in "LDS church" records, others at "Ancestry.com", dunelady.com, or Olive Tree.
William DeMyer (son of Abraham) m. 5 June 1874 Isabella L. McKittrick
[of Jackson, Mich, b.
19 Jan 1856]
Son:
Van Benschoten De Myer b. 11 March 1875;
m. 2 June 1895 Adeline L.
West [b. 23 April 1872]
Son: Robert West De Myer Sr.
b. 30 June 1905
b. Chicago, Ill area d. 10 Feb. 1985
Redding, CA.
m. Mary Tavares [De Myer,
Henricks]
went to Vaser College. {Grand
Pianist}
++++++
Parents of
Lydia Van Dyck
Father: Hendricus Van Dyck
Mother: Duvertje Cornelise Botjagz
Father of Hendricus Van Dyck:
Thomas Janse Van
Dyck b. 1590
Nicholaes De Meyer
2nd
marriage: Sara Kellenaer 8 March 1689
[Note: all De Myer spelling differences are as in original records]
Children of Nicholaes and Lydia:
1) Johannes de Meyer b. 26 Jan 1656
m. Annetje Jedinse Van Vorst 1677 NY
2) * Wilhelmus De Meyer 21 Nov. b.
1657
I 10303 d. 1710-11 m. Catherine Bayard 1678 NY
3) Anna Catherina de Meyer b. 1661 m. Williamse Neering
4) Debora De Meyer b. 1664 m. 1) Thomas Crundall 1684
m. 2) Philip
Schuyler 1687
5) Elizabeth de Meyer b. 29 Aug. 1666 m. Philip Schuyler
6) Henricus DeMyer [notice spelling] b. 7 Nov. 1668
m. Agnietje de
Key [other places spelled deKay] 1689 NY
[I found a note that states that Nicholaes "started the Peach War" ] I do not at this time know what war that indicates.
"Lycos' America's First Families"
" DeMeyer. Nicholaes Mjr died 1691, N.Y. [SCW1CD17]"