Tribute to H. Boegem sr

Only some months after I started with this hobby I had the luck to read in a Dutch genealogical magazine called Gens Nostra (1978) an answer on a question concerning Koedijk (familyname of my mother). The answer looked professional and name and telephone number were mentioned as well. During my phone call we had a very friendly conversation.

Answer from H. Boegem Sr. in Gens Nostra 1978

Mister Boegem has made indices of marriages in 40 villages in the provence North Holland. To be able to do so the Archives lent him the original books. He told me that he was busy making indices of marriages in Warmenhuizen. He promised me to look for my family as well. Such a promise is fabulous if your own experience is only built up yet in a few months. I wrote him a letter (at 16.11.1981) to remind him of this promise and I included the part of the pedigree of my children starting from my mother and the information I received in letters from cousin Willem Koedijk and the photo of the 8 Otto's. I ended with the wish that he could help me and asked for good advise. I had to wait even till 1 May 1982 before I received his answer. It was a marvelous supplement to the not so many facts that I myself had found. Most of the ancestors of my mother were born and have lived in North Holland. North Holland is far from an easy province to do genealogical research. In the appendices blad I and blad II three generations, starting with the parents of my mother, were almost complete and even some ancestors of the fourth generation were included. This was far more than just some hints. I was already glad with these facts, but my astonishment became even greater after receiving his letter of 10 December of the same year. This letter was accompanied by five extra appendices, viz III, IV, V, VI and VII. Isn't it amazing that a person gathers all these data for you. At 20 May 1984 I again received a letter (with appendices I and II). After my enthousiastic letter to thank him for all this material again I received a letter on 24 July 1984 (with appendices I, II, III, IV, V, VI and VII).

To start something is much easier than to finish it. On 3 january 1987 during a visit to the Dutch Genealogy Society (NGV) in Naarden H. Boegem Sr. handed me all his remaing notes (58 small pages systematically double-sided filled with all the facts found concerning the ancestors of my mother). He had already explained by letter that he wanted to give priority to his own pedigree. Quite understandible and logical, but it was a pity for me.

Besides the tribute to H. Boegem Sr, I have shown his appendices here also to show his way of working. To complete this I also show one small page as an example. This page shows his carefull way to perpetrate our hobby. Chapeau ! He possessed an excellent overview of the available Church books per place. He also knew how to move around obstacles. I illustrate this with the following examples:

1. already at appendix II of the first letter the decease of {80} is reported and that is found in the Marriage Appendices at the Marriage of son {40}; because the Marriage Appendices of Broek op Langedijk couldn't even be found at www.genver.nl (the site contained quite a lot of digital copies from the Civil State time, in the meantime replaced by the site zoekakten.nl) this is so far my only source for this fact;
2. at the top of page III (appendix of the letter of 10 December 1982) as birth date for {82} is given the date found at the Liste Civique;
3. at the top of page V (also appendix of the letter of 10 December 1982) also as birth date for {166} is given the date found at the Liste Civique;
4. in the last sentences of page I (appendix of the letter of 24 July 1984) is reported that {166} en {167} have made up their will on 27 February 1796 (Broek op Langedijk O.R. no: 6195 no: 54) and that Willemtje Krijns Bak {167} on 29-01-1806 in Broek op Langedijk is deceased (appendix at the Marriage Contract of Cornelis Krijnsz Bak, son of double Krijn Bak, who is not {334}, and Aaltje Hendriks Boogert (daughter of {166/7}).

You can imagine how much pleasure the letters of H. Boegem Sr gave me in the begin-period of this hobby.