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.

Two different Peter VanDerHoofs who died in 1913?

In the Rockaway Valley United Methodist Church Cemetery is the gravestone for:

Peter Vanderhoof (1844-1913)

Betsey M his wife (1846-1902) [born Hiler]

Clara (1861-1862)

Asa their son (1864-1902)

Note that the stone is etched with years and not months and days. The memorial page at Find A Grave has Peter's date of death as May 26, 1913.

Memorial page at Find A Grave
Peter Vanderhoof 1844-1913
Rockaway Valley United Methodist Church Cemetery
Boonton, Morris County, New Jersey

In the New Jersey State Archives, I found a death certificate for Peter Vanderhoof. The date of death on this record was July 13, not May 26. This Peter died at the Odd Fellows Home in Ewing, Mercer County and was buried in Rockaway Valley.

Death certificate of Peter Vanderhoof
died July 13, 1913 in Ewing, Mercer County, New Jersey

Is this the death certificate for the Peter on the gravestone? The age, 67 years, is almost identical. Widower is consistent. Across his many records, Peter, husband of Betsey, is not listed as the occupation "teamster." No family members are listed on this death certificate. The informant seems to have been an employee of Odd Fellows Home.

In the newspapers for the Ewing area and for Morris County I did not find a notice of death or obituary.

What was the source of the precise date of death on the Find A Grave memorial? I don't know. I can't find it. I'm not saying that it doesn't exist, only that I have yet to come across it. The year could be wrong on the stone. This happened with Hila Vanderhoof (1803-1888) in this same cemetery. She died in 1888, but the year on the stone is 1886.

There is a transcription of grave stone inscriptions for this cemetery. Only the years are provided for Peter.

Peter's entry in the transcription of gravestones
Rockaway Valley Methodist Church Cemetery by Illig.
Vanderhoof Peter 1844 - 1913

I found Peter and Betsey's stone in the cemetery. There were no flat stones or other markers to clarify the date of death. Sometimes members of Odd Fellows carved "F L T" inside links on the gravestone. Friendship, Love, Truth. I did not see this on Peter's stone.

October 11, 2025
Rockaway Valley United Methodist Church Cemetery

Example of links of Odd Fellows carved on a stone- upper right.
The symbol above the links is a square and compass for the Free and Accepted Masons.
GAR in the upper left symbolizes membership in Grand Army of the Republic- Edwin's military service during the Civil War.
Edwin Marsh (1843-1917) and wife Elizabeth Brook (1843-1920)
Evergreen Cemetery in Hillside, Union County, New Jersey
Picture taken August 26, 2011 by J Lutter

Conclusions

Are these two separate men named Peter Vanderhoof who lived in the same area at the same time? Possibly. I have sixty men named Peter Vanderhoof in my tree.

The death certificate is proof of the precise date of death. The information on Find A Grave is not. But the death certificate does not link the decedent to his larger family, so we cannot be sure who he is.

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?

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. 

Mary Vanderhoof 1801-1853 and Mary VanFleet

Was Mary Vanderhoof (1801-1853) a daughter of Jacob Vanderhoof (1772-1847) and Ann Hopler (1772-1841) of Morris County, New Jersey?

Yes, according to her gravestone and a published genealogy.

Below is a picture of Mary's gravestone, located behind her parents, in the DeMouth Burial ground in Denville.

Gravestone of Mary Vanderhoof, died August 31, 1853.
DeMouth Burial Ground is located on private residential property.
Please be mindful if visiting.

The inscription is difficult to read today. It appears to be:

Mary

Daughter of

Jacob Vanderhoof

Died Aug 31, 1853

Aged 52 years

In her book Vanderhoof (1991), Louisa Caroline Freeman Hickerson identified Mary as the third child born to Jacob Vanderhoof and Ann Hopler.

Page of Freeman's book about Mary Vanderhoof.
Housed at the Denville Historical Society

Other than this gravestone and the mention of this gravestone in Ms Hickerson's book, there is no other proof that Mary Vanderhoof existed.

No death record was found for Mary Vanderhoof in the New Jersey ledger books covering 1853, in spite of the precise date on her stone.

Mary remains unidentified in the 1850 census. Both her parents were deceased by this time, so she would have appeared in her own household or in the household of a sibling or other relative.

Mary VanFleet

Ms Hickerson raised three questions after the short blurb about Mary Vanderhoof's gravestone. The issue concerned the surname VanFleet, arising from Jacob Vanderhoof's estate.

Jacob died intestate in 1847. His debts exceeded his assets. There was no money to to distribute to his immediate relatives, which would have provided a listing of his children and/or grandchildren.

Jacob's assets were listed and tallied in 1848. The final line of his assets was "Money collected of Mary Vanfleet 3.00." Below is the image of the accounting that Ms Hickerson wrote about.

Accounting of Jacob Vanderhoof, died 1847 in Morris County.
"Money collected of Mary Vanfleet 3.00"

Who was Mary Vanfleet and what was her relation to Jacob Vanderhoof? No information about this Mary VanFleet is provided in Jacob's estate papers, such as her age, residence, or husband, if any. 

VanFleet had various alternate spellings, such as VanVleet, VanFliet, VanVliet. Also the "Van" could be removed, resulting in more variations.

There was no shortage of people named Mary VanFleet in the 1840s living near Jacob Vanderhoof.

Below is the image of the marriage record referenced by Ms Hickerson. On September 16, 1826 Mary Vanderhoof married William VanVliet "both of the township of Pequanack." True to most of the marriage records for Morris County, New Jersey in this time period, the names of parents and ages are not provided.

"Rockaway 16 Sept AD 1826
I certify that on this Day I married Mr William
Van Vliet to Miss Mary Vanderhoof both of the township
of Pequanack in the County of Morris & State of New Jersey.
Barnabas King Minister of the Gospel."
New Jersey. Morris County. Marriages Book C.
Viewable online at FamilySearch

Was Mary Vanderhoof, wife of William VanVliet, related to Jacob Vanderhoof? We cannot tell from these records alone.

The third record Ms Hickerson mentioned was the 1850 census. In the household of Elijah Vanderhoof was Jacob Vliet, age 15. Below is that image from Pequannock.

1850 United States Federal Census: Pequanac, Morris County, New Jersey.
Elijah Vanderhoof, age 24, farmer.
Amanda, age 21.
Alison, age 8 months.
James VanDuyne, age 24, labourer.
Elijah, age 20, labourer.
Jacob Vliet, age 15.

The head of this household, Elijah Vanderhoof, was a grandson of Jacob Vanderhoof and Ann Hopler. His parents were Peter Vanderhoof and Rachel Peer. How was Jacob Vliet related? We do not know with the limited information offered in the 1850 census.

Who were the VanFleets?

On the same page of the 1840 census for Pequannock are the households of William Vanfleet, Stephen H Cook (husband of Elizabeth Vanderhoof), and Jacob Vanderhoff. Age ranges for males and females in the households are ticked, but that is as detailed as a census prior to 1850 will offer.

1840 United States Federal Census
Pequannock, Morris County, New Jersey

Household of William VanFleet: 7 people in the household. Oldest male between 40-49. Four males below age 15. Oldest female between 30-39. Other female 10-14. Did this household contain Mary Vanderhoof as the matriarch? We cannot tell from the 1840 census.

Some Death Records and Few Details

William VanFleet died November 6, 1853 "near Stan Hope." He was 61 years old. His parents names were Peter and Sarah. He was born in Somerset County.

New Jersey. Marriages and Deaths Morris County Volume Z 1848-1867.
William Vanfleet died November 6, 1853.

Mary VanFleet died June 9, 1851 in Morris Township. She was 61 years old. The names of her parents were not given.

New Jersey. Marriages and Deaths Morris County Volume Z 1848-1867.
Mary VanFleet died June 9, 1851.

We do not know if this death record is for the same Mary VanFleet mentioned in the estate papers of Jacob Vanderhoof in 1847.

We do not know if this Mary VanFleet was born a Vanderhoof.

We do not know if this Mary VanFleet was married to William VanFleet.

Conclusions

We should accept Mary Vanderhoof, died 1853 and buried near Jacob Vanderhoof, as his daughter. The only proof is their relationship inscribed on her stone, but this is more than most of his theorized children.

Jacob probably did not give the name "Mary" to two daughters who both survived. Mary Vanderhoof, wife of William VanVliet, could have been a sister or cousin.

The Mary VanFleet who paid $3.00 to the estate of Jacob Vanderhoof may or may not have been a Vanderhoof. We simply do not know within this context how, if at all, Mary and Jacob were related.

Maria Vanderhoof Tucker 1807-1879

Research Question

Was Maria Tucker (1807-1879) a daughter of Jacob Vanderhoof (1772-1847) and Ann Hopler (1772-1841)?

Published Book

In her book Vanderhoof (1991), Louisa Caroline Freeman Hickerson did not list Maria Vanderhoof, wife of Charles Tucker, as one of the children of Jacob and Ann. If she was born around 1807, there was room for this birth between John in 1804 and Charlotte in 1809.

Children of Jacob Vanderhoof and Ann Hopler (with notation that any might be in error and some children may be omitted):

1. Peter (1797-1847) married Rachel Peer (1800-1850)

2. Elizabeth (1799-1878) married Stephen H Cook (1797-1853)

3. Mary (1801-1853) probably unmarried

4. Hyla (1803-1888) married William Cook (1801-18xx)

5. John (1804-1888) married Sarah Dobbin (1805-1876)

6. Charlotte (1809-1886) married Chilion Cook (1807-1888)

7. Samuel Saron (1811-????) married Eleanor Anderson (1815-????)

8. Richard Vanderhoof (1814-1892) married Eliza Cook (1810-1875) and Jane Tunis (1832-1919)

9. Conrad (1817-1874) married Mary Hopler (1823-1903)

Family Trees

Find A Grave and family trees posit Maria Vanderhoof as the wife of Charles Canfield Tucker (born about 1805). Imaged below is an example of one such tree.

Proposed daughters of Jacob Vanderhoof and Ann Hopler
named Mary or Maria.
Example of online tree configuration of this family.

These trees do not attach or link to documentation on the parents of Maria/Mary Vanderhoof, wife of Charles Tucker.

Other Women Named Mary

A prior article discussed Mary Vanderhoof (1822-1861), wife of John K ODell (1824-1898). I determined that she was not a child of Jacob Vanderhoof and Ann Hopler. A future article will discuss Mary Vanderhoof (1800-1853) and Mary VanFleet.

The Vanderhoof family includes multiple women named Mary or Maria in overlapping generations. This article focuses only on Maria Vanderhoof, wife of Charles Tucker, and does not assume that she is the same Mary Vanderhoof who died in 1853 or the Mary Vanderhoof who married a man named VanFleet.

Records of Mary or Maria Vanderhoof, Wife of Charles Tucker

New Jersey did not begin registration of births until 1848, well before Maria was born. A baptismal record would provide the name of her father and probably her mother, but this record has not been identified yet.

Marriage records of the 1820s were created by the religious officiant and filed with the County of Morris. Such records did not usually provide names of parents, but this would at least confirm that Charles Tucker married Maria Vanderhoof and not Maria with another surname. As of this writing, I have not found a marriage record in Morris County in the 1820s for Mary Vanderhoof and Charles Tucker.

Maria's first chronological appearance in a record was the 1850 federal census, the first to list all members of households.

Below are snapshots of Charles, Maria, and their children from the 1850 and 1870 census entries for Rockaway Township. She was 43 in 1850 and 63 in 1870, which is consistent with being born in 1807.

1850 census in Rockaway, Morris County, New Jersey.
Charles Tucker and Mary resided with seven children
ages 1 through 21.

1870 census in Rockaway, Morris County, New Jersey.
Charles C Tucker and Maria with Sarah J,
their youngest child.

Charles Tucker and Maria were last seen in the 1870 census. I have not found a record of the death of Charles. A gravestone has not surfaced.

Maria was buried at Rockaway Valley United Methodist Church Cemetery in Boonton. Many Vanderhoofs were laid to rest here. Maria's stone gives her date of death as September 13, 1879, age 72 years, 7 months, and 17 days. The calculated date of birth would be January 27, 1807. This date of death does not correspond with an entry in New Jersey's index of deaths. A death certificate would be another chance of seeing the names of her parents. Imaged below is Maria's memorial page on Find A Grave.

Memorial page at Find A Grave
for Maria Vanderhoof Tucker (1807-1879)

Maria Vanderhoof and Charles Tucker had at least eleven children from 1829 through 1851: Peter Vanderhoof, John, Elias, Mary Etta, George Allen, Charles, Marinda, Helen Elizabeth, Laura A, Agnes, and Sarah Jane. They probably had other children who died early.

To indirectly catch Maria's birth name, we can look at the marriage and death records of her children. I found only one record that identifies Maria, wife of Charles Tucker, as a Vanderhoof. Their son, Elias, died November 25, 1913 at the New Jersey State Hospital in Morris Plains. This is locally known as "Greystone" and still exists today for inpatient treatment of mental illness. The death certificate of Elias Tucker provides his mother's name as Maria Vanderhoof. Below is the image of Elias' death certificate.

Death certificate of Elias Tucker died November 25, 1913
in Morris Plains, Morris County, New Jersey 
(New Jersey State Hospital).
Father- Charles C Tucker. Mother- Maria Vanderhoof.
Death certificates are not online but can be ordered from the New Jersey State Archives
or copied in person.

Elias Tucker (1833-1913) was one of the older children of Maria and Charles. In 1860 he married Phebe Elizabeth Blanchard. He served in the Civil War.

Conclusions

None of these sources provide the parentage of Maria Vanderhoof. More information is needed to link Maria to any parents.