Brolsma Newsletter

In the introduction of my book "Brolsma 1620-1996", I wrote "Of course a family history is never complete". After the publication of the book new and interesting facts showed up and I don't want to keep them away from you. Read it yourself!

As far as I am concerned, this newsletter is an experiment. It is a kind of addition to the Brolsma-book. Perhaps there will be more newsletters, perhaps this is the first and the last. It depends to a great extend to the information other people write to me. So keep writing!

Puzzle

The puzzle has been worked out. On page 46 of the book "Brolsma 1620-1996" you can read that it is not clear why a certain Neeltje Sijbrens calls herself Brolsma. Well, the "Genealogysk Jierboek 1996" of the Fryske Akademy offers the key for the solution of this puzzle. An article about the ancestors of Annes Voolstra mentions Neeltje Sijbrens Brolsma.

Neeltje Sijbrens is according to the Registration Service a daughter of Sijbren Sipkes and Jetske Jans. This is recorded in the Brolsma-book too. Jetske Jans appears to be the same person as Ytske Jans, the fifth child of Jan Jacobs (biography # 3).

It is likely that Jetske and Ytske are two ways to write a name, that is pronounced in one way. Ytske, born in 1733, married October 3, 1756 Sijbren Sipkes (1731 - October 7, 1794), farmer in Vrouwenparochie. Their daughter Neeltje was born in 1767. She got the family-name of her mother. That happened more often in those days, specially in the case the wife was more wealthy than her husband. Ytske died September 28, 1789. Sijbren or Sybren remarried one year later, on November 14, 1790 to be correct. His second wife was Sytske Wybes, widow of Schelte Jans Brolsma (biography # 7), as recorded in the book. The deceased Schelte and Ytske were brother and sister. So, Sijbren married the sister in law of his first wife Ytske. Widow and widower married "in the family". This way of family-care was quite normal in those days.

Neeltje Sijbrens farmed in Vrouwenparochie and died also there, being a retired farmer, on December 21, 1838. She married May 20, 1787 Binnert Tjallings (1762-1794) in grou. He preached in Dokkum and was an uncle of the Halbertsma brothers, the famous Frisian poets. The second marriage of Neeltje was on Janaury 20, 1796 in Hallum. She became wife of Sybe Arjens Sybesma (January 5, 1771 - April 5, 1807). They had a daughter Trijntje Sybes (January 13, 1804 - October 27, 1840), perhaps there were more children.

Personal facts

Following, I use the same numbers that were used for to identify the biographies in the book. In that way it is easier to trace persons and sometimes possible to see their picture.

Last year two members of the family died. On August 20, 1996 Hendrikje Wijnsma-Brolsma (137) died. She was born in 1937 as a daughter of Klaas Gerrits Brolsma and Klaasje Dijkstra.

Exactly three month later, her eldest brother Gerrit Brolsma (135) passed away, being 70 years of age. Gerrit was very much interested in the family history and his research helped me in compiling the Brolsma-book.

Kent David, son of Robert Brolsma (119) and Norma Saunders, married September 7, 1996 Mary Thompson. Robert and Norma now have two daughters in law by the name of Mary. Rather confusing!

Jackie Brolsma (198) ran her second marathon after a summer of training. She did not mention her time, but as far as I know she holds the family-record.

Naomi, second daughter of Arnold Brolsma (184) and Frances Brown acceopted a job in middle-Australia. She became propagator for the well known Alice Springs Desert Park.

Lost emigrants

Strange, but true: several Brolsmas got lost. This concerns in particular persons, who emigrated to the United States and lost contact with the family in their home country. Most of the following facts were sent to me by Annemieke Galema, writer of the book "Frisians to America, 1880-1914". She did research in the Registration Service of Friesland and compiled a database of all Frisians who departed to the U.S. I would like to know more about:

- Abraham, son of Klaas Gerrits (27), emigrated 1888, lived in 1900 in Clinton, New Jersey with wife Jannie (born 1863) and daugter Nellie (born 1898)

- Gerrit, brother of Abraham, emigrated 1889

- Attje, daughter of Jacob Jans (26), married to Rein Faber, departed in 1891

- Antje, younger sister of Attje, married to Gauke Kooistra, emigrated 1894, lived in Salem, Wisconsin

- Marten and Jan, both sons of Johannes Martens (47), it is not known when they emigrated and where they went

- children of Gerrit Jans (46) and their descendants, emigrated about 1880, Gerrits wife Klaaske Sipkes Hovinga died in 1899 in Passaic, New Jersey

Moreover, I have a list of people by the name Brolsma, who died in the United States. These data were sent to me by Jack de Boer from Ontario some time ago. I could not trace:

- Clarence, born 1903, died 1981 in Bergen, New Jersey

- Dariel, born 1928 in New Jersey, died 1993

- Elizabeth, born 1903, died 1983 in Florida

- Emma, born 1890 in Arizona, died 1981, last adress Los Angeles, California

- Ethel, born 1923, died 1992, last adress Orange, New York

- Gerald, born 1913, died 1980 in Los Angeles

- Gregg, born 1944 in Nebraska, died 1992

- Jack, born 1960 in Florida, died 1978

- Nellie, born 1898, died 1965 in New Jersey

This Nellie is most probably the same as the daughter of Abraham, mentioned earlier, but I have no confirmation.