Extreme Ancestors – Johanna van Groezen, wife, mother of two, widow in the same year

In this post in my Extreme Ancestors series, I want to introduce you to Johanna van Groezen, who became a wife, mother of two children, and a widow; all in the space of eight months. Johanna van Groezen and her first husband Adriaan Marijnissen are my third great-grandparents. Johanna van Groezen was twenty-one years old when she married Adriaan Marijnissen. They married in Made en Drimmelen in North Brabant on 6 February 1864. They both worked as laborers. He was 27 years old, she was … [Read more...]

Extreme Ancestors – Jan de Witte, age 105 (or not?)

I thought it would be fun to do a series of blog post about the extremes in my tree. The oldest person, the youngest parent, the most spouses, the most children, the one who moved the farthest away; you get the idea. In this first article, I present you Jan de Witte, who died in Cadzand in 1754 at the reported age of 105 years and eight months. 1748 census The earliest record I found that indicated Jan's age was the 1748 census of Cadzand, which included the following household: Jan de … [Read more...]