Pending Orders

Below is the list of records not available online that were ordered and not yet fulfilled.

The last published list was September 22, 2025.

Death certificate of James Cummings, 1912

Requested of the New York State Department of Health. Form DOH-4384 mailed February 9, 2024.

$22 check. (Died in Catskill, Greene County, New York March 11, 1912.) Check cleared July 30, 2024.

Death certificate of Jane Cummings, 1899

Requested of the New York State Department of Health. Form DOH-4384 mailed February 9, 2024.
$22 check. (Died in Catskill, Greene County, New York July 7, 1899.) Check cleared July 30, 2024.

Death certificate of John Grant, 1882
Requested of the New York State Department of Health. Form DOH-4384 mailed February 9, 2024.
$22 check. (Died in Catskill, Greene County, New York December 27, 1882.) Check cleared July 30, 2024.

Death certificate of Edward Sheeby [Edmond Sheehy], 1893

Requested of the New York State Department of Health. Form DOH-4384 mailed March 1, 2022.
$22 check cleared April 2, 2022.
Originally requested in 2015.
Town of Amenia provided an obscure ledger entry in 2023.

Peter Vanderhoof and Crimes in Wisconsin

An earlier article discussed Vanderhoof brothers John and Samuel, who relocated from New Jersey to Wisconsin in the mid 1800s.

As I searched the newspapers of Wisconsin for insight into their lives, many articles about another Vanderhoof appeared in the early 1880s.

Peter Vanderhoof and his family were arrested for stealing wheat and wrecking trains near Sheboygan, Wisconsin in 1880. 

"Wheat Thieves"
Wisconsin, December 27, 1880

Peter Vanderhoof is not an unusual name. I have 46 men of this name in my tree as I write this. The natural question about this person is: Which Peter Vanderhoof is he?

Peter Vanderhoof did not act alone. This was a family criminal enterprise. His sons were named- Nelson and Norton. His sons-in-law were named- Henry Pearson and Frank Harper. Because of this, the correct Peter Vanderhoof was easily identified in the 1880 census in Greenbush, Wisconsin.

Household of Peter Vanderhoof and wife Mary [born Atkins]
1880 United States Federal Census, Greenbush, Sheboygan County, Wisconsin

In this 1880 census, Peter was 48 years old, giving a year of birth around 1832 in New Jersey. His daughter, Caroline, age 20, was born in New Jersey, but his son, Nelson, age 18, was born in Wisconsin.

In 1860 in New Jersey, Peter is easily identified in Pequannock, Morris County, New Jersey because his children's names are unique among the Vanderhoofs: Willis, Araminta, and Norton. Elizabeth was a very popular given name.

Household of Peter Vanderhoof and Mary C
1860 United States Federal Census, Pequannock/Boonton, Morris County, New Jersey

Who were the parents of this Peter Vanderhoof? This was not an easy pursuit and I still may not have a definitive answer.

I expected Peter to be single for the 1850 census, maybe residing with his family of origin, and then married with baby Willis in the 1855 New Jersey state census.

A marriage in the early 1850s may have been recorded only in Morris County or filed with the State of New Jersey. I did not find a record in either collection for Peter Vanderhoof and Mary Catherine Atkins.

If we only view Morris County, there are a few men in the 1850 census who could be this Peter. Without a wife and without knowing the names of his parents, we would not know which Peter of Morris County in 1850 is the bandit Peter of Wisconsin.

On the 1855 state census, ages are not given. All individuals in households are named, except for the entries in Hanover. The household of Peter Vanderhoof contained two males and one female, which fits this Peter.

Household of Peter Vanderhoof
1855 New Jersey State Census, Hanover, Morris County.

We can rule out another contender, Peter Vanderhoof. He died a single man on August 8, 1884 in Montville, age 49 years, 8 months (born about 1830). He was the son of Aaron Vanderhoof and Rachel Doremus.

Death certificate of Peter Vanderhoff. Died August 8, 1884
in Montville, Morris County, New Jersey.
Parents- Aaron Vanderhoff and Racheal Vanderhoff.

A contender is Peter Vanderhoof, son of Jacob G Vanderhoof and Melinda Lozaw. He was born around 1834. He was last seen in the 1855 census with his parents and no wife or children. The profile of the criminal Peter Vanderhoof is that he was married with at least one child by 1855, so I do not think that this Peter, son of Jacob and Melinda, was the bandit Peter of Wisconsin.

Household of Jacob G Vanderhoof and wife Malinda
1855 New Jersey State Census, Hanover and Pequannock, Morris County

There is a memorial page on Find A Grave for Private Peter J Vanderhoof of Company C, 15 NJ Infantry. According to this page, he was the son of Jacob G Vanderhoof and Melinda Lozaw and died December 28, 1862 in White Oak, Stafford County, Virginia.

Find A Grave memorial page for Private Peter J Vanderhoof
died December 28, 1862 in White Oak, Stafford County, Virginia.
Civil War. Company C, 15 New Jersey Infantry.

I am in contact with the contributor and eagerly await documentation on this branch.

Family Trees

Family trees can yield clues to pursue for research. Family trees attribute the bandit Peter of Wisconsin to two different sets of parents.

One avenue is that Peter of Wisconsin was the son of Jacob Vanderhoof and Melinda Lozaw. I have not definitively found Jacob and Melinda's son after the 1855 census. I don't know what happened to Jacob and Melinda, either. Melinda Lozaw is often mixed up with Rachel Bush (1810-1864), wife of another Peter Vanderhoof (1809-1894).

Family tree proposing that Peter Vanderhoof (1831-1931)
was the son of Jacob G Vanderhoof and Melinda Rachel Lozaw

The other attribution for Peter's parents is that they were Peter Vanderhoof (1797-1847) and Rachel Peer (1800-1850). Peter and Rachel are buried at the DeMouth Burial Ground in Boonton, Morris County, New Jersey, close to Jacob Vanderhoof (1772-1847) and Ann Hopler (1772-1841).

Family tree offering Peter Vanderhoof (1832-1931)
as the son of Peter Vanderhoof and Rachel Hyler Peer

In the 1850 census, there is a man named Peter Vanderhoof, age 18, living in the household of Rachel Vanderhoof, age 50, in Pequannock, Morris County, New Jersey. Note that the preceding household is Lozaw and a nearby household is Williams Adkins. The bandit Peter Vanderhoof married Mary Catherine Atkins, daughter of William. There is no Mary or Catherine in this household in 1850. Was this her father? We do not know as of this writing.

Household of Rachel Vanderhoof
1850 United States Federal Census, Pequannock, Morris County, New Jersey

In the meantime, I ordered the death certificate of Peter Vanderhoof for the year 1931 in Wisconsin.

What are the names of Peter's parents on his death certificate? Not what I expected.

Peter Vanderhoof died June 30, 1931
in Green Bay, Brown County, Wisconsin
Available through mail via the Wisconsin Vital Records Office

The parents were Peter Vanderhoof and Ann Miller of Pennsylvania? Who were they?

Parents of Peter Vanderhoof listed on his 1931 death certificate
Father- Peter Vanderhoof. Mother- Ann Miller.

The informant was Mrs Lona Herlik. She was a granddaughter of Peter Vanderhoof. She was born in 1890 in Antigo, Langlade County, Wisconsin to Nelson Vanderhoof (1862-1954). Lona's mother, Anna Kash, died soon after Lona's birth. Lona was raised by her paternal grandparents. Lona never met the great grandparents whose names and birthplaces she was asked to recite for the death certificate. As such, this information may not be accurate.

Peter's death in 1931 merited mention in the newspapers and provided his picture. His crime spree of the early 1880s was not mentioned.

Newspaper article announcing funeral of Peter Vanderhoof

Another article gave Peter's date of birth as November 20, 1832, which could be correct. But his place of birth was stated to be Rahway, New Jersey. This was another weird fact that is probably not true. I have not found any Vanderhoofs in this area of New Jersey in the 1830s. Rahway was in Essex County until Union County was formed in 1857.

Newspaper article announcing the death of Peter Vanderhoof
from heat, July 1, 1931

Another newspaper article may or may not help. Mrs Sarah Miller celebrated her 94th birthday in 1914 in Caldwell, Essex County, New Jersey. This article detailed her deceased spouse and living son, as well as her living siblings. Among them was Peter Vanderhoof, age ninety, of Spencer, Wisconsin. They were noted for their longevity and vast number of descendants.

"Woman Celebrates at 94; Has 112 Descendants Alive"
Mrs Sarah Miller of Caldwell, New Jersey

Sarah died December 6, 1914 in Caldwell. She was buried in Prospect Hill Cemetery, also in Caldwell. Her death certificate listed her parents as Peter Vanderhoof and Rachel Peer.

Death certificate of Sarah Miller, died December 6, 1914
in Caldwell, Essex County, New Jersey.
Parents- Peter Vanderhoof and Rachel Peer.
Document available through the New Jersey State Archives.

Thanks to this article about Sarah's 94th birthday, we know that her brother, Peter Vanderhoof, moved to Wisconsin and had many descendants. The specifics are not accurate for the bandit Peter. He was about eighty in 1914, not ninety. He did not reside in Spencer, Wisconsin, but he did reside in Antigo and Green Bay, which were not very far.

Do all of these bits of information add up to the conclusion that the bandit Peter Vanderhoof of Wisconsin was the son of Peter Vanderhoof and Rachel Peer? I will still search for information.

Possible family tree of the bandit Peter Vanderhoof of Wisconsin

Note: "Pequannock" is the current spelling. The name of this New Jersey township was spelled many ways over the centuries. The borders also changed. I used the current spelling throughout this article for consistency. The website of the Pequannock Historical Society is linked here.

Wrong Day of Death on Stone

We have another conflicting date on a gravestone in Rockaway Valley United Methodist Church Cemetery in Boonton, Morris County, New Jersey.

Find A Grave memorial page
Dora E Vanness Cook 1863-1892

Picture of the stone of Dora E Vanness Cook
at Rockaway Valley United Methodist Church Cemetery
Note the date of death is November 10, 1892

The stone for Dora E VanNess Cook provides her dates of birth and death: October 24, 1863 - November 10, 1892.

But her death certificate has her death as the next day, November 11, 1892. She died at 29 years of age in Boonton.

Death certificate of Dorcastina Elisabeth Cook
November 11, 1892 in Boonton
Available through the New Jersey State Archives

As discussed in the prior article about differing dates for Hila Vanderhoof Cook, the death certificate is a primary source for the date of death. The gravestone is not a primary source. We do not know when or why the stone was engraved.

Elizabeth Dorcastina VanNess married William H Cook (1866-1960) on June 12, 1889 in Powerville, which is an area in Boonton. She was the daughter of James VanNess (1817-1885) and MaryAnn Pierson (1825-1908).

William Cook's paternal grandmother was Hila Vanderhoof (1803-1888), whose gravestone illustrated an engravement with an incorrect year.

The Final Resting Place of Walter Joseph Preston

Where was Walter Joseph Preston buried?

Walter was a great granduncle on my mother's side. On August 4, 1899 he was born in Independence, Warren County, New Jersey to John D Preston (1857-1928) and Bridget A Sheehy (1857-1916). The family soon relocated to Bayonne in Hudson County. 

In 1926 Walter married Edna Armstrong (1899-1976). They had two daughters, Margaret Mary (1928-1998) and Joan Marie (1931-1912).

In the 1940s Walter and his family relocated to Elizabeth in Union County.

Walter worked on the East Jersey Railroad. He was at work when he died of a heart attack on April 23, 1957.

Walter's father, John, died on the railroad in Bayonne in 1928, but because he was struck by a train while working. Walter's brother, Michael, also died on the railroad in 1918, perhaps from jumping out of the train after missing his stop.

Death certificate of Walter Preston, 1957

Obituary of Walter Preston, 1957
The Bayonne Times

 

The place of burial differs on both documents concerning Walter's death. The death certificate has St Gertrude Cemetery in Woodbridge. The obituary has Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City.

Neither document is a primary source for the burial.

I have the records for Preston at Holy Name Cemetery. Walter is not listed with them. The records (not in their entirety) were microfilmed and can be viewed at a Family History Center or Affiliate, but not from home. FamilySearch offers a searchable index of the index that you can view at home.

Find a Grave provides a memorial page for Walter in Saint Gertrude Cemetery in Colonia, Middlesex County. Someone has taken a picture of the stone that Walter and Edna share.

Find a Grave memorial page
Walter Joseph Preston
1899-1957
Saint Gertrude Cemetery

Saint Gertrude Cemetery is included in the searchable database of the Newark Archdiocese. Walter has an entry for his burial in 1957.

Find a Loved One Search
Newark Archdiocese, New Jersey
Walter J Preston buried April 27, 1957 at Saint Gertrude Cemetery

The actual records of Saint Gertrude Cemetery would be the best source for the resting place of Walter Preston.

Pending Orders

 Below is the list of records not available online that were ordered and not yet fulfilled.

The last published list was September 16, 2025.

Death certificate John Vanderhoof, 1888

Requested of Sheboygan County, Wisconsin Register of Deeds. Form F-05280 mailed September 19, 2025.

$20 money order (out of state checks not accepted). 

Death certificate Peter Vanderhoof, 1931

Requested of Wisconsin State Vital Records Office. Form F-05280 mailed September 15, 2025.

$20 check. 

Death certificate Mary Catherine Vanderhoof (née Atkins), 1922

Requested of Wisconsin State Vital Records Office. Form F-05280 mailed September 15, 2025.

$20 check.

Death certificate of James Cummings, 1912

Requested of the New York State Department of Health. Form DOH-4384 mailed February 9, 2024.

$22 check. (Died in Catskill, Greene County, New York March 11, 1912.) Check cleared July 30, 2024.

Death certificate of Jane Cummings, 1899

Requested of the New York State Department of Health. Form DOH-4384 mailed February 9, 2024.
$22 check. (Died in Catskill, Greene County, New York July 7, 1899.) Check cleared July 30, 2024.

Death certificate of John Grant, 1882
Requested of the New York State Department of Health. Form DOH-4384 mailed February 9, 2024.
$22 check. (Died in Catskill, Greene County, New York December 27, 1882.) Check cleared July 30, 2024.

Death certificate of Edward Sheeby [Edmond Sheehy], 1893

Requested of the New York State Department of Health. Form DOH-4384 mailed March 1, 2022.
$22 check cleared April 2, 2022.
Originally requested in 2015.
Town of Amenia provided an obscure ledger entry in 2023.

Pending Orders

Below is the list of records not available online that were ordered and not yet fulfilled.

The last published list was May 5, 2025.

Death Certificate Peter Vanderhoof, 1931

Requested of Wisconsin State Vital Records Office. Form F-05280 mailed September 15, 2025.

$20 check. 

Death Certificate Mary Catherine Vanderhoof (née Atkins), 1922

Requested of Wisconsin State Vital Records Office. Form F-05280 mailed September 15, 2025.

$20 check.

Naturalization Records William Schoenberg, 1907-1925

Requested of the Office of the Clerk of Hudson County, New Jersey. Form Naturalization Search Request mailed September 15, 2025.

$3 check.

Death certificate of James Cummings, 1912

Requested of the New York State Department of Health. Form DOH-4384 mailed February 9, 2024.

$22 check. (Died in Catskill, Greene County, New York March 11, 1912.) Check cleared July 30, 2024.

Death certificate of Jane Cummings, 1899

Requested of the New York State Department of Health. Form DOH-4384 mailed February 9, 2024.
$22 check. (Died in Catskill, Greene County, New York July 7, 1899.) Check cleared July 30, 2024.

Death certificate of John Grant, 1882
Requested of the New York State Department of Health. Form DOH-4384 mailed February 9, 2024.
$22 check. (Died in Catskill, Greene County, New York December 27, 1882.) Check cleared July 30, 2024.

Death certificate of Edward Sheeby [Edmond Sheehy], 1893

Requested of the New York State Department of Health. Form DOH-4384 mailed March 1, 2022.
$22 check cleared April 2, 2022.
Originally requested in 2015.
Town of Amenia provided an obscure ledger entry in 2023.

Family Tree Repair: Hiley VanDerHoof 1803-1888

I was excited to find this family tree with additional details about my fourth great grandmother, Elizabeth Vanderhoof (1799-1878). Then I realized the creator combined Elizabeth with Hiley Vanderhoof (1803-1888). These were two different women living in Morris County, New Jersey in the 1800s.

One of the red flags on this tree is that the person died in 1878,
but was enumerated in the 1880 federal census.

Hiley was spelled differently in various records. "Hiler" is a surname in the area. I do not know if this is the source of Hiley's first name.

• Hyla on her 1823 marriage record to William Cook
• Hiley in census entries
• Hylia on her death certificate
• Hila on her gravestone

Hiley and Elizabeth were two different people. They were probably sisters. They married two Cook brothers.

Family tree of Hiley and Elizabeth
as daughters of Jacob Vanderhoof (1772-1847) and Ann Hopler (1772-1841).

Two Cook brothers marrying two Vanderhoof sisters.
Stephen and William were sons of Henry Cook (1776-1831) and Susannah Wiggins (1780-18xx).

Hiley and William married in 1823 in Morris County, New Jersey. These record books were digitized and are viewable at FamilySearch. Names of parents are not provided in these entries.

Whole page of marriages circa 1823 in Morris County, New Jersey.

Close view of the line for the marriage of William Cook and Hyla Vanderhoof,
"both of Morris County." February 22, 1823 by Reverend John Ford.

Hiley's first appearance in the census is in 1850 in Rockaway, Morris County. Her husband, William Cook, is not listed with her and is presumably deceased. In her household is Jacob Cook, age 26, married within the year. Sarah Cook, age 20, married within the year. William Cook, age 11. Sarah was probably Jacob's wife and not a daughter of Hiley and William. She is not with Jacob in the 1860 census and presumably died between 1850 and 1860.

1850 census. Rockaway, Morris County, New Jersey

William Cook married Sarah J Anderson (1845-1928) in 1862.

Elizabeth died in 1878. She was buried with her husband, Stephen Cook, in the small Cook Cemetery in Denville. The few remaining stones are nestled on the grounds of the Rockaway River Country Club Golf Course.

Find A Grave memorial page for Elizabeth Vanderhoof (1799-1878),
wife of Stephen Cook (1797-1853)

Hiley was buried at the Rockaway Valley United Methodist Church Cemetery in Boonton. The year is incorrect on the stone. She died in 1888, not 1886. The death certificate is below.

Find A Grave memorial page for Hila Vanderhoof (1803-1888),
wife of William Cook

Death certificate of Hylia Cook
died June 16, 1888 in Rockaway Valley.
Father- Jacob Vanderhoff.

I have not found a death certificate for Elizabeth Vanderhoof Cook in 1878.

Elizabeth Vanderhoof and Hiley Vanderhoof were two distinct people, contrary to the online trees floating around.

Another Lutter Baby 1914

In an effort to find out what became of Baby Boy Lutter, born May 9, 1916 in Newark, New Jersey, I looked up a death certificate for Richard Quackenbush.

An index of deaths in New Jersey can be found through Reclaim the Records or Ancestry. In spite of the name of this database at Ancestry ("New Jersey, U.S., Death Index 1848-1878, 1901-2017"), there are no indexes for the years 1904-1915 and 1930-1948.

Index of Deaths in New Jersey
Richard Quackenbash died December 1916 in Newark

I have all of the Lutter death certificates through 1965. Baby Boy born 1916 is not among them. Although Baby Boy was born with the surname Lutter, his parents were not married. His death certificate may be under his mother's surname- Quackenbush.

This is why I wanted to view the 1916 death certificate for Richard Quackenbush.

Death certificate of Richard Quackenbush, died December 27, 1916
at Newark City Hospital, Newark, New Jersey.
Cause of death tubercular meningitis.
Father- O.W. [out of wedlock]. Mother- Margaret Quackenbush.
Burial- Evergreen Cemetery. Undertaker- Jas M Vaughan.

I was on the right track; however, this is another child created by my great grandfather and Margaret. This child was born June 30, 1914 in Newark- according to his death certificate.

This was unexpected.

I have all of the Lutter birth certificates through 1924. How did I miss this Lutter baby born in 1914?

An index of births is available online through Reclaim the Records and Ancestry. Nothing matched this birthdate in the year 1914 in Newark under the surname Lutter or Quackenbush. Next I searched by the exact date. SUTTER. The surname was misinterpreted in the index as Sutter instead of Lutter.

Birth index New Jersey at Ancestry
This is an index of the index.
The certificates are on microfilm at the Archives in Trenton, New Jersey.

Sutter born June 30, 1914 in Newark.
This is Ancestry's index of the New Jersey geographic birth index.

Image of the geographic birth index.
Sutter, baby of H. and M., born June 30, 1914 in Newark, New Jersey.

This index is as close as you can get to the birth record from home. Because I was physically inside the New Jersey State Archives while viewing this index, I could then view the microfilm roll of births for 1914 and copy the certificate for baby Sutter. Howard Lutter was listed as the father.

Birth certificate of Baby Lutter, indexed Sutter.
June 30, 1914 at Newark City Hospital, Newark, Essex County, New Jersey.
Father- Howard Lutter, age 27, occupation brakeman.
Mother- Margaret Quackenbush, age 18.

Baby Lutter/Sutter became Richard Quackenbush. Two year old Richard was buried in Evergreen Cemetery. This cemetery lies in three cities- Newark, Elizabeth, and Hillside, New Jersey. I called the cemetery office for the location of this grave and was told that he was buried in the baby section. These are tiny, single plots, usually with no markers.

Another avenue to pursue is the funeral home or undertaker. James M Vaughan was a lesser-known undertaker. I do not know what became of his business and those records. He died in 1954 and was buried at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in East Orange.

I have not found baby Richard in the 1915 New Jersey State census.

I reviewed what I had uncovered about the life of Howard Lutter.

Howard Lutter and Ethel Laurel Winterton married in Newark on September 17, 1910. The first child of this marriage was my grandfather, Clifford Lutter, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on March 18, 1915.

Howard had already made a son, Richard, with Margaret the year before Clifford was born.

The next year, 1916, Howard and Margaret had twins. The female twin died. Then Richard, age two and a half, died.

In 1918, Beryl, the second and final child of Howard and Ethel, was born in Newark.

Howard divorced Ethel in 1927. He narrated the movements of the family in the 1910s. He failed to mention the children he made with another women that overlapped the birth of the children of this marriage.

Responses of Howard Lutter in his divorce action
against Ethel Laurel Winterton, 1926

In 1928, Howard remarried to Fiorita Lorenz (1890-1969). In 1923, Howard began renting a house from her and her then-husband, James Howard Winnie (1887-1957). Howard described Ethel as a disinterested wife and mother. Because Howard married his landlord soon after their mutual divorces, I suspected that Howard was not a good husband. This suspicion was reinforced when I discovered that he made three children with Margaret while making children with Ethel, his wife.

The earlier baby that Howard created outside his marriage indicates a more involved relationship with Margaret, who was only 17 years old when baby Richard was conceived.

Still missing is the male baby born on May 9, 1916.

Adoption of Hibler by Cook 1880

My great-grandfather, Eugene Everett Cook (1898-1979), was born and raised in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey. He moved around within New Jersey and New York before retiring to Florida, where he died.

Although Cook is a common surname, I look into people with this surname who reside close to my family, especially if they share a given name as well.

Lawrence Eugene Cook (1872-1942) also lived in Newark, but was born in Swartswood, which is in Sussex County, New Jersey- fifty miles northwest of Newark.

Database Social Security Applications and Claims Index

Lawrence's birth was not found in the birth ledgers circa 1872. This is not unusual. He also was not with his parents, John and Idell, in the 1880 census. Mistakes and omissions are not unusual.

1880 United States Federal Census
101 Sheffield Street, Newark, Essex County, New Jersey
Household of John Cook and Idell. No children.

John Cook was born in England. My Cook line was in the United States when it was created in 1776. I figured there was probably no connection, so I did not venture further down that rabbit hole.

On Family Search, while browsing results of full-text searches for Eugene Cook in Newark, I found some documents about this other group of Cooks.

Lawrence Eugene Cook was adopted by John Cook and Idell. Lawrence and Idell were half-siblings. Their birth surname was Hibbler. Their father was Jacob Hibbler (1815-1880). He also used the spelling with one B, Hibler.

Petition of John Cook and Idell to adopt
Lawrence E Hibbler, 1880

Order granting adoption of Lawrence E Hibbler
by John Cook and Idell, 1880

John and Idell petitioned to adopt Lawrence on October 1, 1880. The family relations were explained. Idell was from Jacob's first marriage to Eliza Vliet (1820-1868). Lawrence was from Jacob's second marriage to Melinda Vanatta (1832-1872).

Family tree of Lawrence Eugene Cook, born Hibbler

Using the surname Hibbler, Lawrence Eugene was found in the 1880 census living with his father, Jacob, and other members of the "Hibler" family in Newark.

1880 United States Federal Census
Hibler households at 31 Astor Street, Newark, Essex County, New Jersey

Adoptions were not commonplace. Children could live with people other than their parents without any paperwork or judicial action. As for Lawrence Eugene, Jacob's advancing age and pending death probably prompted this adoption.

Jacob Hibbler died November 11, 1880. He was buried in Fairmount Cemetery in Newark.

Death certificate of Jacob Hibbler
November 11, 1880 in Newark, New Jersey

Although the petition for adoption stated, "said minor has no estate or property in  his own right," Lawrence was left property in his mother's will in 1872.

Will of Melinda Hibbler
Signed October 22, 1872
Stillwater, Sussex County, New Jersey

Lawrence was only eight years old as his father was dying in 1880. Someone with legal authority needed to handle his share of his mother's estate; hence, this rare adoption was sought.

Lawrence Eugene Hibbler/Cook married Etta May Coursen (1874-1942). They had one daughter, Iliff Velmar Cook (1896-1961). The name "Iliff" is probably a family name. There is an Iliff Burying Ground in Sussex County.