ONeil DNA Cousins

Have relatives of Mary Neil (1830-1898) been identified among the DNA matches at Ancestry?

Mary Neil, or Neill, or ONeill, was my great great great grandmother. She was born around 1830. On the record of her first marriage in 1847 to my third great grandfather, Calvin Cook (1826-1889), names of parents were not recorded. The names of her parents are from the record of her second marriage to Nicholas Keating (1825-1898) in 1892: Charles ONeill and Catherina Brougham. Mary's death certificate from 1898 only provides her mother's first name, Katie.

Only the names of Mary Neil's parents are known.

In contrast, Calvin Cook's ancestors are well-plotted at this point in my research. As a bonus, this was an intermarrying group with lots of descendants. As a result, I have hundreds of DNA matches who trace back their ancestry to the ancestors of Calvin Cook: Wiggins, Peer, Post, White, Vanderhoof, Stegers, Young, Hopler, DeMouth, Muller, etc.

Ancestors of Calvin Cook, mostly from Morris County, New Jersey.
They intermarried. Their descendants share more DNA because of this intermarrying.

DNA Strategy

This is the strategy for identifying relatives of Mary Neil amongst the DNA matches:

Mary Neil and Calvin Cook have around fifteen descendants in the DNA database at Ancestry. Use of the "Shared Matches" feature (only available for an additional monthly subscription) finds other relatives. These shared matches might be connected through Calvin Cook OR Mary Neil. If the shared match has ancestry amongst Calvin's ancestors, then the connection is probably not through Mary Neil.

A few people do not share matches with the Calvin Cook Morris County ancestry. These are potentially related through Mary Neil's ancestors.

One of the problems is that we are working with tiny segments of DNA that trace back at least six generations. If we land in Ireland, there are few written records to demonstrate a relation.

DNA Matches of Interest

We will look at three people who match descendants of Mary Neil and Calvin Cook, but do not match anyone in the Morris County group. There are more matches who fit this scenario, but they have cryptic usernames, no trees, private trees, scant trees, and do not answer messages.

All three matches share less than 20cM of DNA with my group, or about one small segment of DNA. This indicates that the relation is likely third cousin or more distant.

The sorting feature places the DNA match's matches at the top. (Also a paid feature.) This is such a helpful mechanism for figuring out how relations relate to one another.

We will label the three matches as Person 1, Person 2, and Person 3. Person 2 and Person 3 are siblings. Person 1 turned out to be their second cousin.

Their common ancestors are Hugh ONeil (1835-1888) and Margaret ONeil (1838-1906) of Ireland and Washington, United States. (Washington became a state in 1889.) Person 1 descends from their son George. Person 2 and Person 3 descend from their son Charles.

Household of Hugh ONeil and his wife, Margaret, in the 1880 census.
Washington Territory, United States of America.
Children: Evelena, Minnie, John, Charles, Francis, George, and Kate.

Having the same surname as Mary Neil is great, but this is a common Irish surname and means little until we have paper documentation. Spoiler alert: we do not have any records connecting them at this juncture.

Hugh ONeil was a veteran of the Civil War. He died in 1888, the year before Washington became a state. His death record was a line in a ledger book. His parents were not listed.

Margaret ONeil died in Oregon in 1906 while visiting her children. Her death certificate provides the names of her parents as James ONeil and Margarete, last name unknown by informant, G W ONeil.

Death certificate of Margaret O'Neil.
Died March 15, 1906 in LaGrande, Union County, Oregon.
Collection online at Ancestry

Was Margaret also ONeil? The records of her children provide no other surname. Some of their records are easily viewable online, such as marriage, death, and Social Security Death Index. No surname other than ONeil or ONeill was given for their mother.

Yet her memorial page at Find A Grave provides Cook as her birth name. Hmmm.

Find A Grave memorial page for Margaret ONeil (1838-1906)
Buried in the Mountain View Cemetery in Walla Walla, Washington.
How was her birth name of Cook found?

Cook is a common name. My Cook ancestry is Dutch, not Irish. The name was Van Der Koeck.

Future Research

More DNA connections will appear with new leads.

More records will find their way in an easily accessible format online.

I'd like to see Brougham turn up amongst the matches.

Private Charles Y Cook, Civil War Veteran 1833-1913

Charles Cook (1833-1913) was born in Morris County, New Jersey to Stephen H Cook and Elizabeth Vanderhoof. He served in the Civil War (1861-1865) with Company L, 27th New Jersey Infantry from September 1862 through July 1863 for a total of nine months.

Various Acts enabled Charles to file for a pension and increases. The pages in this packet reveal further information about the family. I was hoping that his pension would help link him to his great grandfather, Conrad Hopler, but not so. The issue at this point in the research is finding documentation that Charles' mother, Elizabeth Vanderhoof, was the daughter of Jacob Vanderhoof and Ann Hopler. Conrad Hopler, who served in the Revolutionary War, was the father of Ann.

If you can obtain an application for a pension for service in a war, you should do so. Anything could be in that file.

This pension record was ordered through Civil War Records. The price was $110 and the turn-around time was one month. The actual pages are in the custody of the National Archives.

Family tree showing Charles Y Cook (1833-1913),
his siblings, parents, and grandparents

Charles died of dysentery after a trip to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, on July 11, 1913. He attended a fiftieth commemoration and died of an infection he survived fifty years earlier during the War. He was honorably discharged on July 2, 1863, which was in the middle of the three-day Battle of Gettysburg. His papers do not list this location or Battle as one that he participated in.

Death certificate of Charles Y Cook
died July 11, 1913 in Denville, Morris County, New Jersey.
Available in person or through the mail via New Jersey State Archives.

Charles Cook was buried with his wife, Sarah Merritt, at the First Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Rockaway, Morris County, New Jersey.

Jody visiting the grave of Charles Y Cook (1833-1913) and his wife, Sarah Merritt (1842-1909).
First Presbyterian Church, Rockaway, New Jersey.
May 9, 2026

This cemetery is where Conrad Hopler (1730-1816) has a gravestone. I am seeking documentation that Conrad Hopler is a great grandparent of Charles Y Cook.

Jody visiting the grave of Conrad Hopler (1730-1816).
First Presbyterian Church, Rockaway, New Jersey.
May 9, 2026

Stephen Cook and Elizabeth Vanderhoof married in 1819. They had at least five children:

-Ann M Cook (1820-1868), married Jesse Lee (1818-1888)

-Silas Cook (1825-????) (only mentioned in the books of Louisa Caroline Freeman Hickerson)

-Calvin Cook (1826-1889), married Mary Neil (1830-1898)

-William Henry Cook (1828-1902), married Emeline Young (1834-1906)

-Charles Y Cook (topic of this article)

Five children of Elizabeth Vanderhoof and Stephen Cook
identified by Ms Hickerson in her book, Vanderhoof.

I am missing at least one source of Ms Hickerson's research. I have found nothing about Silas Cook, born March 3, 1825, outside her mention.

Charles was able to claim a pension in 1890 because of service-related disability and in 1907 because he lived long enough. A card index exists. Charles has two different cards. The one at Ancestry reflects only the 1890 claim for disability. The card at Fold3 reflects both claims.

Pension card for Charles Y Cook
U.S., Civil War Pension Index: General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934
at Ancestry

Pension card for Charles Y Cook
US, Civil War Pensions Index, 1861-1900. NARA T289. Fold3.

Pension file of Charles Y Cook
Civil War
"alleges that at Newport News [Virginia] about Feb 20, 1863 he contracted rheumatism in back and hip."

The family bible is mentioned in Charles' sworn statement from 1904. "He having been born on the 27 day of August eighteen hundred and thirty three- that his mother's family bible which is in the possession of his brother's widow contains the entry of which the following is a copy." This would have been Emeline Young (1834-1906), widow of William Cook. They had at least ten children. Who received the bible of Elizabeth Vanderhoof? I need it.

Pension file of Charles Y Cook. He mentioned his birthdate as written in his mother's family bible.

Charles clarified his name. "He always understood that he was named after a relative Charles Youmans by name but that his mother did not use the 'Y' in naming him and that he only took up the use of the 'Y' himself after reaching the age of twenty years and [illegible] did so in order to distinguish himself from others having the name of 'Charles Cook'."

First, thank you, Charles, for realizing that so many men bearing the name Charles Cook would confuse researchers for centuries. This has been my experience in researching COOKs.

Second, thank you for clarifying that you used the middle initial 'Y' and the middle name 'Youmans' and that this name was a relative's name.

Who was Charles Youmans? Charles Elmer Youmans (1809-1864) married Anna Cook (1808-1897), a paternal aunt of the younger Charles Youmans Cook.

1860 federal census
Charles Y Cook living with his mother, Elizabeth Cook [born Vanderhoof],
in Rockaway Township, Morris County, New Jersey.
By this time Charles had started using his middle initial.

Charles Cook using his middle name Youmans.
Rev. D. E. Platter (compiler), Historical Manual of the Rockaway Presbyterian Church (Trenton, New Jersey: Wm. S. Sharp, printer and stereotyper, 1880), 5.

Charles explained his family of creation. He married Sarah Lavinia Merritt in 1861. They had at least five children. I'm not sure if they had two sons named George Cook.

Charles Y Cook's listing of his wife and children

The children of Charles Cook and Sarah Merritt were: Laura, Mary, George, Phebe, and Samuel.

In First Presbyterian Church Cemetery with Charles and Sarah is a stone for George, engraved with a date of death January 6, 1866, aged two years, three days. This would give a birth around January 1864. So Mary could not have been born May 12, 1864. The pension lists George's birthdate as October 4, 1866. This could be a second son named George Cook, named after the baby who just died. There was no child named George living with this family in the 1870, so perhaps the second George also died early. Or there was only one. This remains unclear.

Sarah Merritt was also a Wiggins descendant. More research is needed on Wiggins. She and Charles Cook were probably cousins.

Family tree of Sarah Lavinia Merritt showing ancestors and her children with Charles Y Cook

Daniel A Wiggins submitted an affidavit to support Charles Y Cook's application for an invalid pension. His age was listed, which is not usually seen in older records. Looks like 47 or 49 years old in 1891. This could be David Alvin Wiggins (1845-1927). He was a second cousin of Sarah Merritt, sharing great grandparents Jonathan Wiggins (1763-1815) and Phebe Fordham (1764-1851).

Affidavit of John B Cox and Daniel A Wiggins
in support of an invalid pension for Charles Y Cook

Charles wrote his occupation (brakeman, unable to perform because of illnesses contracted from war) and residences. He lived in Brooklyn, New York from 1884-1888. This explains the birth in Brooklyn of his granddaughter, Laura Bidgood (1884-1952), and his appearance in the Brooklyn city directories.

"then in Brooklyn, NY from 1884 to 1888 . . ."

"4 years in Brooklyn from 1884 to 1888 all the rest of time in Rockaway Township, Morris County, New Jersey."

1887-1888 Brooklyn, New York city directory
Charles Y Cook, weigher, 248 South Second.
Weigher was an attempted occupation of Charles Y Cook following the Civil War.

-We still do not have a record supporting that Jacob Vanderhoof and Ann Hopler were the parents of Elizabeth Vanderhoof, wife of Stephen Cook.

-What other sources was Ms Hickerson using in her research of Vanderhoof and Cook in Morris County, New Jersey?

-Where is the family bible of Elizabeth Vanderhoof? In 1904 it was in the custody of Emeline Young (1834-1906), widow of William Cook.

Thank you, Charles Youmans Cook, for your service during the Civil War.

Tangled Family Lines at First Presbyterian Church Cemetery, Rockaway, New Jersey

On May 9, 2026 I visited the First Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Rockaway, Morris County, New Jersey. It was a rainy day, so the stones were darkened. I prefer overcast, dry days for cemetery visits, but this is how the schedule worked out.

This is an active church and cemetery. This is their website.

I saw some Wiggins stones. More articles on Wiggins are coming.

Jody at grave of Daniel G Wiggins (1827-1895) and wife Phebe Belcher (1830-1888).
First Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Rockaway, Morris County, New Jersey.
May 9, 2026.

Daniel Gard Wiggins (1827-1895) was a granduncle of Sarah Lavinia Merritt (1842-1909), wife of Private Charles Youmans Cook (1833-1913). Charles was the reason for this visit.

Elizabeth Minton (1822-1901) and husband Jonathan Wiggins (1820-1877).
First Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Rockaway, Morris County, New Jersey.
May 9, 2026.

Jody at the Cook/Merritt graves.
First Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Rockaway, Morris County, New Jersey.
May 9, 2026.

Here's the stone of Catherine Shaw (1825-1891). She was the first wife of Nicholas Keating (1825-1898). After Catherine's death, Nicholas remarried to Mary Neil (1830-1898), my third great-grandmother. Finding this marriage lead to discovering the names of her parents. 

Jody at the grave of Catherine Shaw (1825-1891),
wife of Nicholas Keating.
First Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Rockaway, Morris County, New Jersey.
May 9, 2026.

Tangled lines: Catherine Shaw was a granddaughter of Conrad Hopler (1730-1816), making her a first cousin, once removed of Mary Neil's first husband, my third great-grandfather, Calvin Cook (1826-1889).

Two Death Certificates for Henry Hennion 1884

Some people have no death certificate. Henry Hennion received two death certificates when he died in 1884 in Montville, Morris County, New Jersey.

Below are the two death certificates. They demonstrate two versions of forms available at the time.

Death certificate of Henry Hennion
Died September 30, 1884 in Montville, Morris County, New Jersey.

Another death certificate of Henry Hennion
Died September 30, 1884 in Montville, Morris County, New Jersey.

You can look up death certificates in the index created by the New Jersey State Archives on their website. This index is free to use. The actual death certificates are not available online. You can order a copy through the Archives' website for $10, which will then be mailed to you. Or you or someone else can visit the Archives in person and retrieve the record yourself for 50 cents per printed page.

There are two entries in the index for Henry Hennion's death on September 30, 1884.

Henry was buried in Greenwood Cemetery in Boonton, Morris County, New Jersey.

We want to view a death certificate whenever possible because this is the primary source of the date and place of death. From there, we can seek an obituary from the local paper and view the burial location. Sometimes the names of parents are given.

For Henry, we have two different first names for his father Henry and John.

Names of Henry's parents on his two death certificates

Based on his age at time of death, age 61 years, Henry Hennion was born in the early 1820s. New Jersey was not recording births at the local or state level at this time; however, there are sometimes church baptismal records that may have recorded the child's name, date of birth, and names of parents.

At the Dutch Reformed Church in Montville, a baby named Henry Hennion was baptized on April 13, 1823. He was born December 4, 1822 to Abraham Hennion and Clarissa Demott.

Baptism of Henry Hennion in 1823
Dutch Reformed Church
Montville, Morris County, New Jersey
Collection at Ancestry

Names of Henry's parents on his baptismal record

Is this the same Henry Hennion? The time of birth aligns, but the father's name is Abraham, not John or Henry. The mother's name, Clarissa, is close enough to Clara. Demott may be a variant of DeMouth, a common name in the area at this time.

Elizabeth Hennion (1818-1890) married Peter I Cook (1814-1889). Elizabeth's death certificate lists her parents as Abraham Henion and Clarissa. She must have been a sister of the Henry Hennion baptized in 1823. 

Death certificate of Elisabeth Cook
died November 20, 1890 in Upper Montville, Morris County, New Jersey

Peter I Cook was my second cousin six times removed. He was the son of John Henry Cook (1773-1859) and Jane Wandle (1778-1849). They were buried at the Pompton Plains First Reformed Church Cemetery.

These lines tangle as we travel back in time through the generations, but the children need to be attached to the correct parents. I'm not sure if we are dealing with two separate people named Henry Hennion or one.

One Source of Error Rectified

Find A Grave is a great resource for genealogical information, but be cautious about the linked relations.

Yesterday I highlighted the memorial page for Emaline B Cook (1836-1891), wife of Joseph S Prosser (1832-1910). They were buried at Saint John's United Methodist Church Cemetery in Turnersville, Gloucester County, New Jersey.

Emaline was incorrectly linked as a daughter of my fourth great grandparents, Stephen H Cook (1797-1853) and Elizabeth Vanderhoof (1799-1878), who lived in Morris County, New Jersey. One of their sons, Henry or William Henry (1828-1902), married Emeline Young (1834-1906), likely the source of this mix-up.

I requested that this connection be removed. Overnight the memorial manager did just that.

Updated memorial page
Emeline B Cook
without parents

Ancestry links memorials of Find A Grave in its search results. Multiple trees incorrectly attribute Emeline as a daughter of Stephen Cook and Elizabeth Vanderhoof. The initial evidence would be the (incorrect) link on Find A Grave and 16-year old Emeline Cook in Stephen's household in 1850 in Rockaway Township.

Sampling of trees at Ancestry
that incorrectly attribute Emeline Cook, wife of Joseph Prosser,
as a daughter of Stephen Cook and Elizabeth Vanderhoof

Please use caution when copying from Find A Grave and Ancestry.

I will copy Emeline's death certificate from 1891 on my next trip to the New Jersey State Archives.

False Daughter

While researching Elizabeth Vanderhoof (1799-1878) and her husband, Stephen H Cook (1797-1853), of Morris County, New Jersey, I found that someone made an error at Find A Grave.

Find A Grave is a great resource for viewing gravestones. The inscriptions can contain full names, relationships, dates, and places. The bonus, as well as the problem, is that memorial pages can be linked in relationships. Ancestry.com links hints directly to Find A Grave, making it very easy to align these relationships into family trees.

An extra daughter, Emeline, was attributed to Stephen and Elizabeth at Find A Grave.

Memorial page at Find A Grave
for Stephen H Cook (1797-1853)
showing daughter Emeline

Emeline Cook (1836-1891) was the wife of Joseph S Prosser (1832-1910). They married in Camden County, New Jersey in 1855. They lived in Camden and Gloucester Counties, which is another clue that Emeline may not have been of the Cooks of Morris County.

Memorial page at Find A Grave
for Emeline Cook (1836-1891), wife of Joseph Prosser

New Jersey death certificates are not online. I can pick up a copy of Emeline's record on my next trip to the Archives. The names of her parents might be provided on this document.

This error may have happened because of the 1850 census. Emeline Cook, age 16, was listed in the household of Stephen Cook in Rockaway, Morris County, New Jersey.

1850 United States Federal Census
Rockaway Township, Morris County, New Jersey
Household of Stephen Cook
Next household is Richard Vanderhoof (1814-1892)
and his second wife Elizabeth Cook (1810-1875)

This Emeline was not a daughter of Stephen, but rather a daughter-in-law. She was Emeline Young (1834-1906), wife of William Henry Cook (1828-1902). A clue is that the household members are listed out of order of age: Henry Cook age 21; Emeline, age 16; Charles age 17. (Lots of information on Charles will be in a future article.)

We have a picture of Emeline Youngs. Her family photo album is preserved at the Denville Museum.

To address the error at Find A Grave, I submitted suggested edits to the memorial manager. 

Jacob C Vanderhoof (1843-1889)

In the previous article, I mentioned that I was unsure about the life of Jacob Vanderhoof, born about 1843 to Elizabeth Cook (1803-1882) and Jacob Vanderhoof (1772-1847) in Morris County, New Jersey.

"What became of Jacob Vanderhoof, born about 1843? I am not sure as of this writing. As we have seen many times within this family, there was more than one person named Jacob Vanderhoof born in the 1840s. I will need to gather their documents before we have definitive paths."

In her book, Vanderhoof, Louisa Caroline Freeman Hickerson wrote that Jacob C Vanderhoof died June 11, 1889.

"In the 1860 census, Jacob C was age 17 and was with the Hinchman's in Denville- probably
working for them. Later he lived at Hibernia and then later at Somerville. The
date of his death is June 11, 1889."

According to this death certificate, Jacob C Vanderhoff died at the Raritan Hotel in Somerset County, New Jersey. Burial was at New Cemetery in Somerville. This is now called New Somerville Cemetery on Find a Grave.

Jacob C Vanderhoff died Jun 11, 1889 in Raritan, Somerset County, New Jersey.
Father- Jacob Vanderhoff. Mother- Elizabeth Vanderhoff.
Age 46 years. Born in Denville.
Buried at New Cemetery, Somerville.

The surname was spelled Vanderhoff, not Vanderhoof. This is a variant that I see often.

Jacob's gravestone was photographed for Find A Grave. He served in the Civil War in the 7th New Jersey Infantry Company K. His middle name is "Cook" on this memorial page. I do not see his middle name spelled out in any other records.

Memorial page at Find A Grave
Private Jacob Cook VanDerHoof (1842-1889)

The marriage of Jacob C Vanderhoof and Eliza Derland was recorded at the state level. They were married November 9, 1872 in Succasunna, Morris County. Eliza was 19; no age was given for Jacob.

New Jersey Marriages. Book BL 1872-1873.
Available on Ancestry.

Here's why I did not initially connect this marriage record to Jacob, son of Jacob Vanderhoof and Elizabeth Cook. His parents were written as "Conrood & ___ Vanderhoof." Conrad is one of the more popular names in these Morris County branches. It would not surprise me if Jacob's middle name was Conrad.

Parents of Jacob C Vanderhoof and Eliza Derland from the marriage record, 1872

Jacob C Vanderhoof and Eliza Dorland (1853-1925) had two sons who lived to adulthood:

Wallace L Vanderhoof (1874-1961)

and

William Ward Vanderhoof (1885-1961)

Two Elizabeth Cooks, Wives of Vanderhoofs

In the ongoing effort to sort the Vanderhoofs of Morris County, New Jersey, we have the related family of Cook. 

My fourth great grandparents were Stephen Cook (1797-1853) and Elizabeth Vanderhoof (1799-1878). They were buried in the Cook Cemetery in Denville, which is now on the grounds of the golf course of The Rockaway River County Club. Here's an older article of me in Cook Cemetery.

Also in the Cook Cemetery is a footstone engraved EV. This is supposedly for Elizabeth Vanderhoof.

Memorial page at Find A Grave
Elizabeth Vanderhoof 1804-1882
Cook Cemetery in Denville, New Jersey

There exists a death certificate for Elizabeth Vanderhoof, age 78 years, died April 24, 1882 in Rockaway Township. Her father was David Cook. Burial was at the Cook Cemetery.

Death certificate of Elizabeth Vanderhoof. Died April 24, 1882, age 78 years.
Hibernia, Rockaway Township, Morris County, New Jersey.
Father- David Cook.
Buried at Cook Cemetery in Denville.

I thought that this Elizabeth was the wife of Richard Vanderhoof, a son of Jacob Vanderhoof (1772-1847) and Ann Hopler (1772-1841). Richard was one of the last children, born around 1815. Richard and Elizabeth were last seen together in the 1870 census in Rockaway. They had at least seven children from about 1835 through 1847. At least two of the death certificates of these children list the parents as Richard Vanderhoof and Eliza Cook. 

In reviewing the works of Louisa Caroline Freeman Hickerson, she proposed a remarriage of Richard Vanderhoof, as well as a remarriage of Richard’s father, Jacob, also to someone named Elizabeth Cook. 

The two women named Elizabeth Cook were probably double first cousins.
They married a father/son pair.

I suspect that Susan Wiggins and Jemima Wiggins were sisters. Two sisters married two brothers. Both couples named daughters Elizabeth Cook. One became the first wife of Richard Vanderhoof. The other became the second wife of Jacob Vanderhoof, the father of Richard Vanderhoof.

The Elizabeth Cook who married Richard Vanderhoof had two brothers, Stephen and William, who married Richard’s sisters, Elizabeth and Hiley.

The Elizabeth Cook who married the widower Jacob Vanderhoof had a brother, Chileon, who married Jacob’s daughter, Charlotte.

This becomes intertwined.

 

JACOB VANDERHOOF (1772-1847)

Jacob and his wife, Ann Hopler, are buried in her family’s cemetery, Demouth Burial Ground, in Boonton. The stones are difficult to read at this point in time. The date of death on Ann’s stone is February 27, 1841. There might be no other record of her death.

Current appearance of the Demouth Burial Ground in Boonton.
Picture taken October 11, 2025 by Jody Lutter.

 According to Freeman, “There was Jacob Vanderhoof who married Elizabeth Cook, a daughter of David and Jemima (Wiggins) Cook. From copies of land transactions it would seem that it is the same Jacob as above. Two sons: Jacob C. born 1843. David born 1844. Elizabeth was a widow before 1850.”

Information about Jacob Vanderhoof's supposed second marriage and the children of that union.

In 1842, Jacob Vanderhoof and wife Elizabeth sold property in Pequannock to William M Dixon. If this is the same Jacob, this would indicate that Jacob had remarried between the death of his first wife, Ann, in 1841, and the date of this deed in 1842.

Deed. Pequannock, Morris County, New Jersey.
Jacob Vanderhoof and wife Elizabeth transferred land to William M Dixon.
March 4, 1842

By 1850, Elizabeth was widowed and living in her father’s household with two Vanderhoof children: Jacob, age 7, and David, age 5. Note the prior household is Tunis.

1850 census. Township of Rockaway.
Household of David Cook, age 69.
Jemima Cook. Catherine Adle (daughter?).
Elizabeth Vanderhoof, age 46. Jacob Vanderhoof, age 7. David Vanderhoof, age 5.

In 1872, Elizabeth filed for a widow’s pension based on the service of Jacob Vanderhoof in the War of 1812. Jacob’s death was stated as April 6, 1846. The date on his gravestone is April 6, 1847. 

Widow's Pension War of 1812
filed by Elizabeth Cook, wife of Jacob Vanderhoof, 1872

The pension was denied because Elizabeth could not prove that she was married to Jacob before the Treaty of Peace on February 17, 1815. She stated that her name was Elizabeth Cook and that the marriage occurred between 1820 and 1824.

Statement of Elizabeth Cook explaining that she cannot recall exactly when she married Jacob Vanderhoof.
They probably married in 1841 or 1842.

David Vanderhoof died in November of 1876. His entry on the death ledger stated his parents’ names as Jacob and Elizabeth. 

Death ledger entry for David Vanderhoof, age 25.
Died November 1876- no day given.
Father- Jacob. Mother- Elizabeth.

David was buried in Cook Cemetery, according to the application for a military headstone. 

Application for military headstone of David Vanderhoof (1845-1876).
Private, Company G, 7th Regiment, New Jersey Infantry. Civil War.

What became of Jacob Vanderhoof, born about 1843? I am not sure as of this writing. As we have seen many times within this family, there was more than one person named Jacob Vanderhoof born in the 1840s. I will need to gather their documents before we have definitive paths.

RICHARD VANDERHOOF (1815-1892)

Richard was born around 1815. He married Elizabeth Cook, probably around 1834. I have not found an entry for this marriage in the records of Morris and Essex Counties. A marriage was announced in a Newark, Essex County newspaper for Richard Vanderhoof and Elisabeth Cook in 1834 by Reverend S Higgins. Also married at this time was Jacob P Hill and Eunice Sanderson. This couple lived in Newark. Eunice was buried in 1851 in Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Newark.

Marriage announcement of Richard Vanderhoof and Elisabeth Cook, 1834.

In 1850, Richard Vanderhoof, his wife, Eliza, and their seven children were living in Rockaway. Elizabeth’s age is consistently a few years older than Richard’s age. The prior Cook household was Stephen Cook and Elizabeth Vanderhoof, my fourth great grandparents.

1850 census Rockaway Township, Morris County, New Jersey.
Household of Richard Vanderhoof and Eliza.

Freeman wrote that Elizabeth Cook was possibly the daughter of Henry I Cook who died around 1831. "In 1831 she signed her name as Eliza Cook." If she did marry Richard Vanderhoof, it was after her father’s estate was settled.

Information about Richard Vanderhoof, his marriages, and children.

There was an Elizabeth Vanderhoof who died May 13, 1871 in Denville. She was married. Her parents' names were not provided. Who was she?

Death ledger entry for Elizabeth Vanderhoof, age 58.
Died May 13, 1871 in Denville, Morris County, New Jersey.
No parents or spouse listed.
Cause of death- consumption (tuberculosis).

Eliza Vanderhoof, wife of Richard Vanderhoof, was buried at Rockaway Valley United Methodist Church Cemetery. The date of death on this stone is August 30, 1875. I have not found a corresponding entry in deaths reported to the State of New Jersey. Freeman wrote, "Eliza seems to have died sometime about 1873-1875." Why did she not think that Eliza died as early as the 1870 census up until the time of her husband's remarriage?

Gravestone of Eliza, wife of Richard Vanderhoof
Died August 30, 1875. Aged 64 years.
Rockaway Valley United Methodist Church Cemetery
38 Valley Road, Boonton, Morris County, New Jersey

Three months after the death of his first wife, Richard Vanderhoof, son of Jacob, married Jane, daughter of Joseph Tunis. The Tunis household was next to Richard’s stepmother in the 1850 census.

Marriage ledger entry for Richard, son of Jacob Vanderhoof,
and Jane C, daughter of Joseph Tunis.
November 25, 1875 in Denville.

Richard and Jane were last seen together in the 1885 state census in Rockaway. Richard’s estate was inventoried in 1892.

Inventory of Richard Vanderhoof by Peter F Cook and Edward Peer.
Dated April 21, 1892. Morris County, New Jersey.

April 5, 1892 is the date of death on Richard Vanderhoof's gravestone. I do not see a corresponding entry in any online death index in New Jersey.

Gravestone of Richard Vanderhoof
Died April 5, 1892. Aged 77 years.
Rockaway Valley United Methodist Church Cemetery
38 Valley Road, Boonton, Morris County, New Jersey

The stones of Eliza and Richard are side-by-side.

Gravestones of Eliza and Richard Vanderhoof
Rockaway Valley United Methodist Church Cemetery

Richard's second wife, Jane, died in 1919 in Eatontown, Monmouth County. Her daughters and siblings are mentioned, but not her husbands.

Obituary of Jane C Vanderhoof, 1919.
Her children were from her marriage to William H Drayton (1822-1863).

More documentation is needed to firm up these loose ends.