Ledley's Vanderhoef Book

There is another family history book written about the Vanderhoof family. It was written by Wilson V Ledley (1913-1978) and published in 1959. Vanderhoef Family. The First Five Generations.

You can find it on The Internet Archive.

Ledley begins with Generation One, the couple Cornelis Van Der Hoeve and Geertje Van Fulpen. In 1661, Geertje, a widow, arrived in New Amsterdam (now called New York City) with her six children, Generation Two.

Ledley tentatively places Jacob Vanderhoof (1772-1847) as a son of Dirck Vanderhoff (baptized 1746). [Ledley wrote the wrong century for Dirck's baptism.] [Also, the spelling as "Vanderhoof" and "Vanderhoff" were interchanged throughout Ledley's work.] Ledley identified one other son of Dirck Vanderhoff and Catrina, Peter (baptized 1772).

Generation Five: Peter Vanderhoff and Jacob Vanderhoff
Wilson V Ledley. Vanderhoef Family. The First Five Generations. 1959.

175. PETER VANDERHOFF, son of Dirck (#54), was baptised
at Pompton on Sep 20, 1772. In the Census of 1800
at Goshen in Orange County, New York, there is listed a Peter
Van der Hoff, aged 26-45, wife same, son and daughter under
10 and other unidentified females in the household who may
have been his wife's relations. She, from the one baptismal
record at hand, was Jude SMITH and they had:

    250. Elizabeth, b. 9 Feb 1797, pb. Pompton Dutch Church

176. JACOB VANDERHOFF, supposed son of Dirck (#54) was
born 1771-72 from his grave in Morris County (GMNJ
7:7). The only basis of assigning Jacob as a son of Dirck is

the naming of his presumed first son Peter probably after the

boy's uncle above, but this is at best only tentative. He

had been married by the Morris County Clerk (GMNJ 4:31) to

Anne HOPLAR on Jan 23, 1796, who died Feb. 27, 1841 in her

69th year. Their presumed son:

    251. PETER (sup.), b. 1797-98, d. 17 Apr 1847 in his 50th

year; wife Rachael d. 12 Nov 1850 in her 50th

year; their graves listed following those above.

Generation Four: Dirck Vanderhoff

54. DIRCK VANDERHOFF, son of Jacob (#20), was baptised
at Pompton on May 30, 1946[sic]. From the baptism of

Peter below, we know his wife's name was Catrina, but her

surname has not been discovered. The only basis for assign-

ing Jacob as a son of Dirck is the naming of the latter's

presumed son Peter possibly after his uncle, but his is at

best extremely tenuous, particularly since no will nor pro-

bate records have been found. Children were:

    175. PIETER, bp. 20 Sep 1772 Pompton, sp. Pieter & Sara Jongh

    176. JACOB (sup.), b. 1771-72 (grave record)

Ledley referenced two sources for Jacob Vanderhoof: a grave stone transcription and a marriage record to Anne Hoplar. I visited the DeMouth Burial Ground in Boonton, Morris County, New Jersey. Below is a picture of the worn stones. Peter Vanderhoof (1797-1847), the only conjectured child in Ledley's work, is buried next to his parents.

DeMouth Burial Ground
Boonton, Morris County, New Jersey

Morris County, New Jersey Marriages
Jacob Vandroff and Anne Hoplar married January 25, 1796

Ledley did not mention Jacob's baptism. Jacob was baptized in Paramus, Bergen County, New Jersey. His date of birth was written as February 13, 1774. His parents were Dirk Vanderhoef and Catriena.

Jacob, born February 13 [1774],
child of Dirk Vanderhoef and Catriena.
Baptisms at the Dutch Reformed Church in Paramus, New Jersey.

Peter, a definite son of Dirck in Ledley's work, was baptized in the Pompton Church. His date was September 20, 1772. I am not sure if this was a birth date or a baptismal date. Sponsors were Pieter Jongh and Sara. This would help the notion that Catriena was born Jongh, later anglicized to Young.

Pieter, born September 20 [1772],
child of Dirk Vanderhof and Catriena.
Sponsors Pieter Johngh and Sara.
Baptisms at the Dutch Reformed Church in Pompton, New Jersey.

Remember that my in-depth look at the Vanderhoofs was undertaken to confirm the parentage of my fourth great grandmother, Elizabeth Vanderhoof (1799-1878), wife of Stephen H Cook (1797-1853). 

On December 24, 1795, in the Dutch Reformed Church in Pompton, Peter Vanderhoof married Judie Smith. (Judie is a rare name for this time period. Maybe it derives from the biblical name Judith.)

Peter Vanderhoof and Judie Smith married December 24, 1795.
Marriages at the Dutch Reformed Church in Pompton, New Jersey.

In this same Pompton church in 1797 Peter Vanderhoff and Jude Smith baptized Elisabeth, born February 9.

Elisabeth, born February 9 [1797],
child of Peter Vanderhoff and Jude Smith.
Baptisms at the Dutch Reformed Church in Pompton, New Jersey.

In her book Vanderhoof (1991), Louisa Caroline Freeman Hickerson (1921-2018) mentioned Peter and Judy and their two daughters, Elizabeth and Ann. Ann was born about 1815 (died 1894) and married Jacob Decker (1810-1882). There is no further information provided about Elizabeth.

Excerpt from Hickerson's book about Vanderhoofs

When listing the probable children of Jacob Vanderhoof and Ann Hopler, Hickerson listed Elizabeth with a birthdate of August 26, 1799. Hickerson did not even speculate if Elizabeth, wife of Stephen Cook, could have been a daughter of Peter Vanderhoof and Judith Smith instead of a daughter of Jacob and Ann.

Hickerson's writing about Elizabeth, wife of Stephen Cook,
and their children

Further Research:

Where were the children of Jacob and Ann baptized? These records could provide precise birthdates and the names of their parents.

What became of Elizabeth, the daughter born in 1797 to Peter Vanderhoof and Judith Smith?