Related Stepmother on Marriage Record

A marriage record is an excellent way of discovering the names of the parents of the bride and groom. The parties helped create the document and could ensure completeness and accuracy, as opposed to birth and death records in which the subject of the document is of no assistance in providing information.

That said, the information is not always accurate.

This was the case with the marriage record of William Hanford Ocoboc (1872-1941) and Anna Holander (1874-1948). They married December 15, 1894 in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey. William was raised in Rockaway, Morris County, New Jersey, but relocated to Essex County after the marriage. (Hanford is also spelled "Handford." Ocoboc has spelling variants, such as "Ockobock.")

William's parents were Hanford Ocoboc (1844-1918) and Ann Elizabeth Cook (1854-1885); however, on the marriage record, his mother was listed as Clara Lee (1861-1913).

Marriage record.
William Ocoboc and Anna Holander married December 15, 1894
in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey.

Names of William Ocoboc's parents as reported on his 1894 marriage record.
His mother was actually Ann Cook, not Clara Lee.

Clara was William's father's second wife. Clara and Ann were first cousins. Their grandparents were Stephen Cook (1798-1853) and Elizabeth Vanderhoof (1799-1878).

Family tree showing relationship of the two wives of Hanford Ocoboc (1844-1918).
William's marriage record listed Clara, not Ann, as his mother.

William was about thirteen years old when his mother died in 1885. The following year, his father remarried, resulting in another child born into the family. William was old enough to remember these events and know that his mother was Ann, not Clara. Perhaps he named Clara as his mother out of respect to her. Perhaps someone else supplied the information and William did not notice the discrepancy. We may never know. We must verify all information with other records whenever possible.

Hanford was related to both his wives. Through Hanford's paternal side, he was their second cousin, once removed. They shared ancestors Conrad Hopler (1730-1816) and Elizabeth Demuth (1735-1814). Handford's mother was Elizabeth Vanderhoff (1812-1889). Presumably she and the other Elizabeth Vanderhoof (1799-1878) were related.

Relationship of Hanford Ocoboc (1844-1918)
and his two wives

The resulting children of these unions were their own cousins.

On This Day- August 6, 1919

On this day in my family's history, my great grandparents, Eugene Everett Cook (1898-1979) and Rene Marion Duryea (1900-1943), married in Manhattan, New York.

Marriage Record of Eugene Cook and Rene Duryea
August 6, 1919
Manhattan, New York, United States.
Harold Lockwood Duryea and Alwine Wrage were the bride's brother and sister-in-law.
(Certain New York City records are available online free of charge at
the Department of Records and Information Services)

Both resided in New Jersey at the time of this marriage. It was not uncommon for residents of New Jersey to marry in nearby New York City. Eugene lived in Newark, Essex County, with his parents, Charles Cook and Minnie Bishop. Rene lived in West Hoboken, Hudson County, with her parents, Abraham Brewer Duryea and Nellie May Cummins. (West Hoboken is now a part of Union City.)

The couple had two children, Beulah (my grandmother), in 1921, and Jeane, in 1925.

This was the first marriage for both. Rene died in 1943 in Warwick, Orange County, New York.

Eugene remarried to Gladys Marvin (1904-1986). They resided in Florida.

Beulah Cook (my grandmother)
Eugene Cook (my great grandfather)
Gladys Marvin (wife of Eugene)
1978 in Florida

Eugene was my only great grandparent who was alive when I was born. I don't think we ever met.

New Jersey Vital Records Online 1848-1878

This is wonderful news.

New Jersey's earliest state-level vital records are online at Ancestry!

The covered years are 1848-1878. There are no individual certificates in this time period; rather, births, marriages, and deaths were recorded in ledger books. The information varies, but can include the person's name, date of birth or age, names of parents, places of birth, marriage, and/or death, residence, and more.

Previously, these records were only available at the Archives in Trenton and, within the last few years, at a FamilySearch Center (not from your house).

The ledger books are "organized" by county, year, and event. Use the guide below to find the correct book.

Paper I copied at the Archives a long time ago

Remember to look in the correct county. Places currently in Union County were a part of Essex County until Union County was created in 1857.

Until 1857, Plainfield was in Essex County.
You need to look in records of Essex County to find what is now called Union County.
And that is how "Essex" looked. Double S.

The microfilm rolls at the Archives:

This image captured the spine of the book.
I have never seen the original books. Do they still exist?

The microfilm is viewable on the reader in the background.
Flashback to the 1960s.

Below is a page viewed at a FamilySearch Center. Alfred Dunlop (1831-1892) married Mary Bedle (1840-1927) on December 20, 1865 in Matawan, Monmouth County. He was my third great granduncle. They moved from New Jersey to Indiana and had three children, but no grandchildren.

Citation and blue markings added by author.

I don't know how Ancestry or FamilySearch comes by their images. The quality varies.

Same page at Ancestry

I didn't find all the images at Ancestry. For example, my great great grandfather, Charles Cook (died 1937) was born in Denville, Morris County on June 11, 1858. This was recorded in Book Z2, Births in Morris County, 1848-1867. I found no match in the searchable index and the book did not appear in any menu for browsing. Below is the image photographed on the microfilm reader at the Archives.

Typing added by author

The State Archives has already indexed this collection on their website. It is more precise than the index currently available at Ancestry.

Search page on the State Archive's website.
The exact URLs change over time, so Google for the current link.
Try "New Jersey State Archives Searchable Databases."

For example, a search of the State's index produces specific and accurate results for David Uhl, died October 3, 1867 in Newark. He was a baby of my third great grandparents, David Uhl (1834-1884) and Clara Patschke (1840-1914).

Ancestry's index, in contrast, omits distinguishing details, such as age, location, and date.

The image of the page in the ledger book is below. The month is written once; hence, the indexer only wrote the day. The year is inferred by the range of dates at the top of the page. In this instant, the dates are from June 1 of 1867 through June 1 of 1868. Because this event was in October, the year was 1867. All events were in Newark, but the indexer did not include location, perhaps because "place of death" was blank on each line.

Benjamin Marsh (1797-1867) was a son of my sixth great grandparents, Charles Marsh (1755-1833) and Abigail Denman or Faitoute (1756-1821). (That will be a post for another day.) Benjamin died in Newark on April 8, 1867 and was buried at Mount Pleasant Cemetery. His entry in ledger book N "Deaths in Newark City 1848-1867" is below.

The State's online index tells us exactly where to find Benjamin's entry.

Ancestry's index is wonky. I did not think this could be him, but no other entries looked like him either. His gender, age (off by 44 years), date (missing year), and residence (name of parents of someone else) were all transcribed wrong.

I would anticipate (hope?) that Ancestry will clean up their index. If linking to such a record through your family tree software, you would need to discard the erroneous information. It would be a good idea to go to the page and download it for your files, in case something happens to this collection. Yes, folks, this can happen.

Around May of 1878, the State began creating individual certificates for births, marriages, and deaths. That is why this collection is only from the start of state registration in 1848 through the middle of 1878. If your event is on the cusp, search both the ledger books and the individual certificates.

Double John Cook and Jane Peer

John Cook was my sixth great grandfather.

On December 15, 1745 Johannis was baptized at the Pompton Plains First Reformed Dutch Church in Morris County, New Jersey. His parents were listed as Hendrik VanderKoeck and Catrina. Witnesses were Pieter Post and Annaatje.

On October 4, 1772 John Cook and Jane Peer were married at the First Presbyterian Church in Morristown.

On January 3, 1822 the will of John Cook was submitted for probate in Morris County. No wife was mentioned in the will. Jane was deceased when her father, Samuel Peer, wrote his will in 1818.
John Cook named four children in his will:
Catherine (married Easton)
Henry (my fifth great grandfather)
David
John


The son named John Cook (1790-1878) married a woman with the same name as his mother. Jane Peer (1794-1888) and John Cook were married by Reverend Barnabas King in 1812 in Rockaway, Morris County, New Jersey. They may have been first cousins. Jane's father was Jacob Peer, a brother to John's mother.

In the 1830s John and Jane relocated from Morris County, New Jersey to Onondaga County, New York.

John Cook Junior claimed a pension for service in the War of 1812 for substituting for Stephen H Cook (1797-1853). But Elizabeth claimed a widow’s pension through Stephen H Cook (denied because she could not prove the date of their marriage). Stephen was John's nephew (and my fourth great grandfather).

Questions:

How are the two people named Jane Peer related to each other? Was the younger Jane Peer a first cousin of her husband, the younger John Cook?

When did the older Jane Peer die?

Why did both John Cook and Stephen Cook serve in the War of 1812 if John substituted for Stephen?

The Will of John Cook 1822

JOHN COOK WILL

In the name of God Amen.

I John Cook, of the township of Pequanack in the county of Morris and State of New Jersey- being of sound and disposing mind and memory do make and ordain this my testament and just will in manner following viz-

I give and bequeath unto my Grandson Isaac EASTON, the son of my daughter, Catherine, one hundred dollars.

I give and devise unto my two sons, Henry I COOK and David COOK, five dollars each and I add no more as I have heretofore provided for and given them their proportion out of my estate by deeds and otherways.

I give and devise unto my youngest son John COOK and unto his heirs and assigns forever all the rest and residue of my Estate, both real and personal, that may remain after the payment of my funeral charges, just debts, and the expenses attending the settlement of my estate and the legacies herein before bequeathed.

I do hereby constitute and appoint son, John Cook, and my trusty and esteemed friend, David PEER Esquire, executors of this my last will and testament, hereby rendering and disannulling all former wills and testaments by me made and declaring this and no other to be my testament and last will.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal the first day of February in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and nineteen: John Cook.

Signed, sealed, published, pronounced, and declared to be the testament and last will of the said John Cook who signed the same in our presence, who signed our names as witnesses at the same time and at his request: Joseph JACKSON, Mahlon F DICKERSON, John D JACKSON.

Will submitted January 3, 1822 in Morris County, New Jersey.
David Thompson, Surrogate.

Morris County Wills, Liber B, pages 527-528.

Note: Surrogate records for Morris County, New Jersey can be copied from microfiche at the County Courthouse in Morristown. The other twenty counties can be viewed at FamilySearch.org at no cost.

Note: The spelling of the name of the township has varied over the centuries. It is now spelled Pequannock and encompasses much less land than it did when John Cook wrote his will in 1819.

The Divorce of the Dickersons

Nellie Patience Cook (1875-1951) was a first cousin, four times removed of my father.

She lived in Morris County, New Jersey. In 1895 she was married to Nathaniel F Dickerson (1873-1938) by Reverend Clark of the Methodist Church of Rockaway.

Three or four children were born from this marriage:

Raymond C Dickerson (1895-1900)

Elvin T Dickerson (1898-1900)

Vernon Cook Dickerson (1903-1960)

(In her divorce complaint, Nellie states that three children died in infancy.)

Two children, Raymond and Elvin, died on July 31, 1900 in Denville from dysentery. They share a gravestone in the Denville Cemetery.

In the 1910 census, Nellie was living with her son, Vernon, in Rockaway, without Nathaniel.

Nellie filed for divorce from Nathaniel in 1909. The records are housed at the New Jersey State Archives in Trenton.

Nellie's complaint stated that Nathaniel was having an affair with Sadie Virginia Dobbins, also known as Virginia Butler. Nathaniel left Nellie on December 13, 1903, two days after she gave birth to Vernon, claiming he was setting out to learn the plumbing trade.

A witness testified that Nathaniel and Virginia began boarding in her home in New York City on December 25, 1903. They presented themselves as married to each other.

The divorce was granted. Nellie was awarded $69 in fees.

In 1911, Nathaniel married Sarah Virginia Butler, widow of Dobbins.

Nathaniel did not pay the money to Nellie. She kept taking him to court as late as 1918.

As an aside, Nellie's name on her marriage certificate looks like "Netty," which can be confusing because Nellie had a sister named Nettie (1868-1945), who married Francis E Peer (1870-1932). In the divorce complaint, Nellie explained that a stray mark of ink makes the letter Ls in her name appear to be letter Ts and that her name is Nellie, not Nelly, Nettie, or Netty.

Amanuensis Monday: Will of Samuel Peer, 1819, in Morris County, New Jersey

In the name of God Amen.

I, Samuel Peer, of the Township of Pequanack, in the County of Morris and State of New Jersey, being of sound mind and memory this fourteenth day of September in the year of our Lord Eighteen hundred and eighteen. Thanks be to God for all his mercies, calling to mind the mortality of my body; and as touching the things wherewith it hath pleased God to bless me in this life, I give and bequeath in manner following (to wit):

1st, after my debts and funeral charges be paid, which is to be done by making sale of so much of my personal estate as shall be necessary by my executors herein after named, I give and bequeath the residue of my personal estate together with all my real estate to the use of my daughter, Susannah Peer, for and during her natural life, provided she continue to live unmarried, but if she should marry, this bequest to be null and void.

2d, after the decease or marriage of my daughter, Susan Peer, it is my will that my real estate descend to my two grandsons, Samuel Peer and Jacob Peer, and to be divided between them, that Jacob Peer shall have the house and barn where I now live with twenty acres of land to begin at the river below my house and to run westerly parallel with the road in front of my house untill it strike the back line of my farm and the residence of my homestead farm. I wish to be so divided that each of the two have an equal quantity, that is each an equal quantity of acres in the whole homestead farm. Also that each have alike quantities of wood and meadow land. And if my said grandsons cannot agree on a division of the said lands abovesaid then I appoint that Thomas Vanwinkle herein after named as one of my executors shall divide the same between them agreeably to the directions herein laid down, which division shall be conclusive between the said Samuel and Jacob. It is my intention that the bequest of my real estate herein made to my grandsons, Samuel Peer and Jacob Peer, be to them, their heirs and assigns forever. Also the lot of woodland which I brought of William Miller containing about twenty acres I also give to my two said grandsons and to their heirs and assigns forever and to be equally divided between them.

3d,  it is my will that my daughter, Susannah Peer, shall have no liberty to sell any of my personal estate of which I have given her the use of, nor to cut any timber, only for her own firewood and for fencing and repairing the farm and buildings.

And 4th it is my will that my two grandsons aforesaid pay the following legacies five years after they get possession of the lands herein bequeathed to them.

Unto the heirs of my daughter, Elizabeth decd [deceased], the sum of fifty dollars;

unto my daughter Catharine or her lawful heirs, the sum of fifty dollars;

unto the heirs of my daughter, Jane decd [deceased], the sum of fifty dollars;

unto the heirs of my son, Jacob Peer decd [deceased], the sum of fifty dollars;

unto the heirs of my daughter, Rachel Peer decd [deceased], the sum of fifty dollars.

5th, after the decease or marriage of my daughter, Susannah, all the personal estate which she hath had the use of and is in being then it is my will shall be equally divided amongst my children or their lawful representatives so that the representatives of each have the share divided equally amongst them that their parent would have.

6^th, I appoint Samuel Peer, my grandson, and Thomas Vanwinkle to be executors to this, my last will and teswtament.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal dated as above.

Samuel Peer, his mark

Signed, sealed, published, and declared by the said Samuel Peer to be his testament and last will in the presence of us:

Samuel Peer Jun

Thomas Vanwinkle

Isaac Drake

Thomas Vanwinkle, one of the witnesses to the foregoing will, being duly sworn according to law, did depose and say that he saw Samuel Peer, the testator therein making his signature to said will and heard him publish and declare the foregoing writing to be his last will and testament, and that at the doing thereof the said testator was of sound and disposing mind and memory as far as this deponent knows and as he verily believes and that Samuel Peer Jun and Isaac Drake the other subscribing evidences were present at the same time and signed their names as witnesses to the said will together with this deponent in the presence of the said testator.

Thomas Vanwinkle

Sworn before me March 16^th, 1819

David Thompson Jun, Surrogate

Samuel Peer, one of the executors named in the foregoing will, being duly sworn according to law, did depose and say that the foregoing writing contains the true last will and testament of Samuel Peer, the testator therein named, so far as he knows and as he verily believes and that he will and truly perform the same by paying first the debts of the said decd and then the legacies in the testament specified so far as the goods and chattels and credits of the said decd can thereto extend and that he will make and exhibit into the Surrogate’s office of the County of Morris a true and perfect inventory of all and singular the goods, chattels, and credits of the said decd, and render a just and true account when thereto lawfully required.

Samuel Peer

Sworn before me March 16^th, 1819

David Thompson Jun, Surrogate

Renunciation of Thomas Vanwinkle

I, Thomas Vanwinkle, being named as one of the executors in the foregoing last will and testament of Samuel Peer, late of Morris County, decd [deceased], do hereby renounce my right to act as executor of the last will and testament of the said Samuel Peer decd, and do decline taking upon myself the burden or duties of an executor to said will.

March 16th, 1819

Thomas Vanwinkle

Signed before me at Morristown

March 16^th, 1819

David Thomspon Jr

Note: Samuel Peer was my 7th great grandfather.
I descend from his daughter, Jane, who was deceased when Samuel wrote his will in 1818.
Jane married John Cook (1745-1821).

Triple Cousins

Two interesting DNA matches appeared at 23andMe on my father's side.

They are close cousins to each other.  Each shares one to four small segments of DNA with my father and his siblings.

Sharing several small segments can indicate endogamy, or intermarrying within a small group of people over several generations.

Below is the DNA shared by my aunt and these two matches.

A comparison of family trees produced the same location of Morris County, New Jersey.  From there, we had to figure out the common ancestors, which turned out to be on more than one line, as predicted by the DNA.  These two DNA cousins are descended from Anna Augusta Cook (born 1843) and James Augustus Estler (1840-1921).

The common ancestors were:

- John Cook (1745-1821) and Jane Peer (dates not determined): My sixth great grandparents.
  My line descends from their son, Henry Cook (1777-1831).
  The Estler/Cook cousins descend from another son, David Cook (1780-1860).

- George Wiggins (dates not determined) and Unknown: My sixth great grandparents.
  My line descends from their daughter, Susannah Wiggins.
  The Estler/Cook cousins descend from another daughter, Jemima Wiggins (1780-1851).

Yes, two brothers married two sisters.

- Jacob vanderHoof (1774-1847) and Ann Hopler (1772-1841): My fifth great grandparents.
  My line descends from their daughter, Elizabeth vanderHoof (1799-1878).
  The Estler Cook cousins descend from another daughter, Charlotte vanderHoof (1809-1886).



A family tree contained a picture of James Augustus Estler and ten of his children.  These children are my cousins in three different ways.

If anyone has further information on Wiggins in Morris County, New Jersey, please reach out to me.  Thank you.